Different
by Mooncat99
Summary: She’s different, no doubt. It intrigues him it scares him. And she drives Logan crazy. Season 5 in Logan's POV. ROGAN
1. Blazing Blue Eyes

Title: Different

Author: Mooncat

Summary: She's different. Why is she different? And she drives Logan crazy. Why??? ROGAN

Warnings: K

Disclaimer: I do not own Gilmore Girls or their wonderful characters.

Copyright: Sarah Diaz 2005

Author's Note: I love the idea of Rory and Logan. In my opinion, they're perfect for each other. However, what I always missed was more of Logan's side and emotions during their encounters. So here is my version of said side.

Thanks: A big, big thank you for Emma, who's crazy enough to tackle this jumbo story to beta it! You rock!

_**Different**_

**Chapter 1: Blazing Blue Eyes**

**(Written in the Stars)**

Logan was amused. Sure, that in itself wasn't something unusual. The reason for his amusement, though, made it different from other times.

It was a girl. Not a girl that swooned at his feet like they usually do, oh no, a girl who actually had the nerve to tear him down with a fury. And for what did he get this honor? Apparently for being an elitist snob, who had talked down a friend of hers, and worse, apparently right in front of this girl. A fact he had trouble believing. Not the being a snob part, but that he could have forgotten this girl. Sure, she was spitting mad at him and obviously didn't like him...but God, she was beautiful with her blazing blue eyes and the slightly colored cheeks, caused by her rage.

If he was one thing, he was an admirer of beautiful girls and he just couldn't fathom that he'd ever forget this girl. Okay, so he had been pretty much hangover during their first encounter, of course after a Life and Death Brigade weekend, but still…

Well, one thing was for sure... he certainly wouldn't forget this girl any time soon. Actually, he was fairly certain that the very desirable image of this cute brunette with her blazing eyes, shining so strongly and clearly out of her delicate face, the pure annoyance with him easily readable not only in her eyes and on her face, but also in the stance of her body, would be branded forever in his mind. And what a body it was.

Before he knew it, he was arguing back, just to see how much more he could rile her up. She didn't disappoint. Angry definitely suited this little spit of fire. Amazingly though, he found himself even more intrigued by her comebacks. She almost never hesitated in barking back and he had to admit, that she came up with very good arguments. To compare him to Judy Dench for example… well, certainly no one had ever done that before. So he went a step further, throwing in an argument he was almost certain would render her speechless. But then, the 'we live in a free country' argument always worked well to get the last word in. And he was right, she faltered for a moment, a moment he used to confuse her. Giving her time to find another argument.

And then she surprised him. She narrowed her eyes at him for a moment.

"I just don't like it when someone hurts my friends," she quietly said, very simply.

It floored him. There was no argument he could say to that. It sure was as good as the free country one. And yet, he couldn't let her win so easily. So he told her that she was easily goaded. Oh yeah, that riled her up again. Feeling a sense of victory, he added that she obviously liked to argue.

Unfortunately, before he could do or say more, Finn interrupted them. Damn! They had searched for his elusive redhead of the moment the whole day, well, at least ever since Finn woke up, and he had to find her right at this moment. Inwardly he sighed and looked back at the girl. It was a pity. The magic of the moment was broken. Well then, he would just have to make sure that there would be other moments. He was, after all, Logan Huntzberger, and so far no girl he pursued had resisted him and this one, though still feisty right now, would be no exception.

And as he saw it, there was no time like the present. He had a hunch that she wasn't used to sexual innuendos. Besides, it would be the perfect first step for him to show his interest. So he did just that, leaning into her personal space, breathing in her scent. He couldn't place it, not for now, and he pushed that mystery away to ponder for later.

"Tell Marty I said hi. And I promise to remember you instantly next time," he promised and gave her the same promise with his eyes.

She showed no reaction, which did not affect Logan much. Instead, he leaned in a bit more and cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Now tell me that wasn't fun," he said in a low, sexy voice, flashing her his patented killer smile.

Oh yeah, his hunch had definitely been right. She had no words, but she did blush furiously, making her look even cuter. Reluctantly, he turned away to follow Finn, but not without glancing back. The sight of the stunned girl had him smirking. He bet she wasn't too used to not having the last word.

Well, she would have to get used to it. He was the master of getting the last word in.

A thought popped up in his mind and grinning, he addressed the girl once again.

"Master and Commander," he told her.

Confused, she wrinkled up her nose to look suspiciously at him. "The movie?" she asked.

Hmm, so her brain still worked. Refreshing. Logan sent her his full smile. "No, that's what I want you to call me from now on," he told her smugly, pleased when he saw the annoyance returning to her, just before he made his exit up the stairs.

While he searched for Finn and Colin, he thought back to the encounter, once more remembering those breathtaking blue eyes of hers. Something… he wasn't sure what, but something was different about that girl.

Rory.

He quietly whispered her name, letting it roll over his tongue. He liked the sound of it. And he liked the name. It wasn't a common name, but then, he had been born into the world of money and society and unusual names were quite common among the rich. Yet, Rory didn't sound like one of the hightailing names only given to a poor child to impress the world. Hmm, he wondered what her last name was.

But then, he knew where she lived. With that information it shouldn't be hard to find out. Plus, there was bartender Marty. He could always press him for information. Not that Logan had any intention to do that. He remembered now well enough just why Colin had thought it fun to bump into Marty and embarrass him a little… because they had seen how he obviously had tried to impress the girl. Rory. So any information from Marty would probably be highly doubtful.

"There you are! What took you so long?" Colin's annoyed voice interrupted Logan's thoughts.

He looked up and found himself standing in front of his two best friends just when the dorm door Finn was standing at got slammed into his face. Logan sighed. "Not the right one after all I presume?"

Colin laughed. "Oh no, she's the one. Couldn't you tell by the glare she sent Finn's way?"

As he hadn't seen the redhead, Logan actually couldn't. But Colin's mention of a glare brought promptly the memory of two very angry blue eyes glaring at him. Logan couldn't help but smile.

"Why are you smiling? Here, your best friend in the world is standing, looking at the pieces that once was his heart, and you smile?" Finn asked him. "Thanks mate, I'm touched by your concern," he mocked and laid a hand on his chest.

Logan pushed the memory of Rory out of his mind and slung an arm around Finn. "Finn, it's her loss. Come, we'll get you back to your room; take a few shots and change to go out to the pub. I'm sure the next redhead is already waiting for you there."

At the mention of booze and redheads, Finn's face cheered up. "Right you are Huntzberger! Let's go party!" To emphasize his words, he let out a loud whoop before hurrying away.

Laughing, Logan and Colin followed their friend.

* * *

TBC 


	2. Haunting

**Chapter 2: Haunting**

**(Norman Mailer, I'm pregnant)**

Three weeks had gone by since Logan had met Rory for the second time. And Logan wasn't amused anymore. In fact, he was rather intrigued. Because something very unusual had occurred during this time… he had found himself thinking about the beautiful brunette with her amazing blue eyes and sharp tongue quite often.

Even more surprising was that he even thought about her when he was out with other girls. Something that wasn't exactly in their favor, obviously. If they were blue-eyed, he found himself annoyed that their eyes weren't as alive with fire as Rory's. If they were brown-haired, he couldn't help but find them far less interesting than Rory. And generally, he was getting bored quickly with all of them. None of the girls he had been with since his memorable encounter with the blue eyed spit fire had the poise and confidence to look at him other than with awe, lust or triumph. Not one was quick witted enough to keep up with him in a real talk. Actually, not one was intelligent enough to even have a decent conversation with.

He wasn't sure yet what he thought about this development. For now, he'd let it happen and wait where it would lead him to. In the meanwhile, he kept his dates rather short and spent a bit more time with just the guys.

Of course he tried to run into Rory once more. To his dismay though he had had no luck so far. She never had come over to the pub. She hadn't been to any of the parties he had attended with his friends. When he walked by her dorm he never got lucky to run into her. Nor had he so far seen her anywhere else on campus.

It was so frustrating.

At least he had found out her full name. Not that that had been a real challenge. A smile accompanied with a promising glance had easily given him access to the names of the persons presently occupying the ground floor apartment in Branford House. Paris Geller and Lorelai Leigh Gilmore. As Rory would have been a real stupid nickname for Paris or Geller he was fairly certain that his Rory was the Gilmore girl.

The name had actually surprised him. Gilmore was a good name in his circle. Hell, his parents were friends with Richard and Emily Gilmore and he had been at more than one of the Gilmore's parties. And just because of that he knew that Rory couldn't be related to them. He sure would have met her before. Not to mention that with her attitude she hardly could have been one of society. And the clothes she had worn screamed anything but money.

Actually, he had come to the conclusion that she was probably enrolled here at Yale only due to some scholarship. She was just the type for that.

And yet… there was her name. Lorelai Leigh sure fit in with other names out of high society. Not to mention that she lived in a two-bedroom suite in Branford and not only that, it was the ground floor apartment. This just screamed money and good connections. On the other hand, her roommate, Geller, surely was of society, so perhaps she just was lucky to be associated with Geller.

Of course he could have gotten more information, but somehow he liked the mystery around that girl. Sooner or later he would inquire about her more, but for right now he was content with wondering. And guessing.

"You're late."

Logan looked up to see Colin scowling at him. "What?"

"The staff meeting," Colin elaborated.

Still clueless, Logan raised an eyebrow.

Exasperated, Colin rolled his eyes. "Yale Daily News? Mitchum threatening to cut you off should you not involve yourself more in the paper? You begging me to not let you forget about that so that I won't have to cover for you in the future? Does that ring any bells?"

"Oh shit!" Remembering, Logan jumped up from the couch and raced out of Finn and Colin's suite. He had totally forgotten about the stupid meeting!

Yet, when he passed his own dorm he couldn't resist making a slight detour to go into his room to grab the hat he had bought to annoy Doyle, the crazy little guy who currently run the paper. Sure, his father had forced him to join the college paper but he'd be damned if he had to sit around the newsroom and not have at least a little fun. Based on previous, admittedly short visits there, he had found pleasure in scaring and annoying Doyle. Doyle hated him… what he was and where he came from. But he was scared shitless of Logan's father, the great Mitchum Huntzberger, media magnate.

When he finally got there, he was late of course. But that wasn't what surprised Logan.

No way.

But sure enough, there, behind a pale and gaping Doyle, stood the girl he had been looking for for the past three weeks, and, naturally, already glaring at him again.

Rory.

Unbelievable. Here. At the paper. He had looked everywhere for this girl and now he found her here, out of all places! Oh yeah, fate sure could be ironic.

But instead of acknowledging her presence immediately he first gave his full attention to Doyle…or, well, at least let it look like that. In truth he drank in every flicker of emotion that ran over Rory's face. She surely hadn't expected him to show up here either. And while he annoyed Doyle, he watched her as she got more and more confused, especially when his father was being mentioned.

"Oh Logan, please. You? Trouble? Stop, we're just glad to have you here," Doyle said, his voice full of sarcasm.

For a moment Logan actually really looked at Doyle. "Careful boy, you might hurt yourself, kid. Better get back to work, right boss?" he said in a slightly warning tone before he finally acknowledged Rory's presence. "Rory, nice to see you!"

Her eyes flashed at the way he stressed out her name. Good. So she hadn't forgotten about their last encounter. That would have been a shame. He moved over to his desk and sat down. All the while he kept Rory in the corner of his eyes while she talked to Doyle. It wasn't hard to guess that Doyle was telling her about him. His suspicion got confirmed when he heard her say his father's name in a very surprised voice. So she had heard of his father. Considering that she apparently worked here on her own free will that wasn't much of a surprise. A surprise though was that she apparently had no idea who Logan was. That was new. Most people he met knew who he was, at least here on campus.

Doyle left and he saw disgust on Rory's face as she glanced at him thoughtfully. He was pleased that his last name alone hadn't turned her into one of the many fans of said name and the status and, not to forget, all the money that came with it. Yet, he was a bit thrown back by the disgust. Okay, so he was maybe being a bit of an elitist some times, but he was one after all. He wasn't half as bad as others were like Colin or like his mother. Surely he had done nothing to deserve this look of disgust. Uncomfortable, Logan reached for his reporter hat, 'Press' written on it, and put it on.

Quickly he leaned forward and grabbed the phone. "Hello, city desk? Smitty here, take this down. I got a hot scoop on a tall blonde and I gotta put it to bed on the double," he said in a fairly good imitation of reporters in an old movie. He had no idea why he was acting out like this, but he just had to do something to get away from these haunting eyes. He put the receiver down and laughed at Doyle. Unable to stop himself, he sent Rory a wink, one that she answered with an unnerved eye roll.

The disgust was still there in her eyes. Having enough of it, Logan leaned back in his chair, put his feet on the desk and covered his face with the hat, shutting out those haunting eyes.

* * *

The following couple of days he actually avoided Rory. Not that this was hard, given that he had no idea where she spent all her time. But he did stay as far away as he possibly could from the Branford House and the YDN newsroom. It wasn't that he had given up on her or something like that… not yet at least. It was just that he couldn't get rid of the image of those eyes, looking at him as if he was some waste of space and air.

And that troubled him. Why should he care what some chick thought of him? It wasn't as if she was the first girl who was angry with him or didn't want to have to do anything with him for heaven's sake. No, she wasn't. But she was the first girl who was all these things even before they went out on a date. Usually, the anger came when the girl would realize that he wasn't interested in a relationship, commitment, in settling down or in whatever else they had dreamed about when he had first asked them for a date.

What was Gilmore's problem after all? So he had not remembered their first meeting. So he hadn't been fair to Marty, but actually he had complimented him on his work, several times, and offered him the prospect of more jobs, assuring more money for her friend. Okay, okay, Colin had been a bit snobbish towards him, but that was Colin. And Logan was rich, had a name that held much power. It wasn't as if he had asked for this. Damn it, Rory knew nothing about him or how it was to be the Huntzberger heir with no choice but to take over the business and probably end up in a loveless marriage with some dumb trophy wife!

Logan had the right to have at least some years for himself before he got pushed into this obligation. To do what he wanted, to date as many girls he wanted, to live as he wished and not what his family deemed appropriate. And she had no right to judge that, no right at all!

"Hey Logan, you coming or what?" Jamie called out to him.

Sighing, Logan looked up and saw a bunch of his Ethics classmates who were also part of the LDB waiting for him. Right, they wanted to order their costumes for the next event.

"Coming," he said, grabbed his backpack and jacket, and got up to join his fellow LDB members.

Another thing he couldn't understand was why he was spending so much time thinking about Gilmore. Yeah, she was beautiful, but honestly, he had dated girls with better looks, yeah, even some models had been among his dates. So why couldn't he get that girl out of his head? And why did he even care what some random girl thought about him?

Argh! It was driving him crazy!

"Hey Huntzberger!"

Speaking of the devil… Logan looked back over his shoulder to see no other than Lorelai Leigh Gilmore leaning against a pillar, apparently waiting for him.

To say that Logan was surprised would have been an understatement. He would have bet the monthly distribution he got from his trust fund that Rory wouldn't try to meet with him.

Yet, he smiled at her. "Hey! You waiting on me?" he asked, just to be sure he hadn't misinterpreted her greeting.

Rory pushed away from the pillar and moved to stand in front of him. "Could be," she answered with a smile.

Whoa… now, that was some amazing change in attitude. The last two times he had met her she had nearly ripped off his head and now she flirted with him? Just what could have caused this change? Of course that was just a rhetorical question for Logan. He knew well enough what caused such a 180 ° turn around… money and power.

Though he had to admit that he was disappointed in Rory. Somehow he had had the impression that she wouldn't turn out to be one of the many gold diggers trying to get their claws into him. That such a thing was beneath her. God, and he had thought she was different.

Of course that didn't mean that he wouldn't play along. "Wow, I'm flattered," he told her, smirking at her.

Rory shrugged. "Your prerogative."

Hmm. Perhaps… "You here on business or pleasure?" he asked as doubts about her motives were surfacing after all, even though he had no idea what business they could have together.

Well, that question got answered quickly. "I just thought that maybe I'd give you a chance to respond to my article," Rory offered him with a sweet smile.

An article, of course. He should have known that that was the only thing that could bring her to seek him out. And here he had thought she got interested in his status and his money. Then again, why should he have fathomed her to come to him for help with an article?

"What article?" he asked, slightly frowning.

Her smile got sweeter and Logan felt the hairs on the back of his neck standing up, instantly alarmed. He didn't know Rory very well, but he was fairly certain that her smile didn't mean anything good for him.

"The article I'm doing on the Life and Death Brigade," she answered nonchalantly.

_What?!_

Logan had a hard time covering his surprise and shock. "Don't really know what you're talking about," he said as casually as possible, trying to give her a blank look.

Her eyebrows went up. "You don't?" she asked. "Huh… I thought you would. It's a club," she told him, her eyes sparkling. "One of these super secret, super exclusive clubs here at Yale, membership spans a thousand centuries, secret handshakes and secret sayings, and a lot of running around in circles in your underwear, that kind of thing."

For a moment, Logan felt relief washing over him. Good, she may know the name, but apparently had not much information about the Brigade otherwise. Please? Secret handshakes? Running around in underwear? She was right with one thing: the LDB was very exclusive. They would never disgrace themselves by doing such well used and boring dares.

"Sounds pretty secret," he commented, much calmer now.

Rory nodded. "Yeah. Anyhow, I'm doing some sort of an exposé on this particular club and I figured, since you're in it, maybe you'd like to have your point of view included."

And she strikes again, was all Logan could think while he tried to not let his smile falter. "I'm in it," he repeated.

Her eyebrows rose a bit higher. "Well, aren't you?" she asked, her smile though giving the clear message that she didn't believe him anyway.

Just what had Rory in her hands?

"I've yet to run around in a circle in my underwear," he told her, the truth actually. His father had early taught him that if confronted with nosy reporters, the best way to do damage control was to stick with the truth as much as possible.

Once again, Rory shrugged. "Well okay… I mean, I have proof that your grandfather was in it, which means that your father was in it. Which should mean that _you_'re in it. But maybe not. Okay."

How the hell did she find out about his grandfather and father? For that matter, how did she get wind of the LDB at all?

"Sorry to let you down," Logan apologized and had to cringe a little at how insincere this had sounded.

'Get a grip Huntzberger!' he ordered himself.

"No let down. It would have been nice, but I have plenty of stuff without you, and I'm sorry to have bothered you," she assured him, and, from the glint in her eyes, knowing very well just what a bait she had thrown at him.

Fuck. And now what? If he asked her what more she had, it was as good as a confirmation that he was indeed in the LDB. But if he didn't ask, the LDB would have no idea just what they were up against. On the other hand, it was obvious that he probably couldn't say or do anything to change her mind about him anyway. So he'd better do some damage control.

"You have plenty without me, huh?" he asked, boring his eyes into hers.

Eyes that laughed at him. "Oh yeah! I have the ball gowns, the girl in a gorilla mask, _In Omnia_ _Paratus_," she interrupted her list to look cockily at him, "very fancy catch phrase by the way, the license plate on the black SUV, and about a dozen other little things. I mean, getting an interview with an actual member would have been great. But I'm okay without it," she finished, once again beaming with her sweet smile.

"Well great," Logan commented while he inwardly ranted down every curse he ever had learned in his life.

Damn she was good. Way too good. Where had she gathered all these details? Oh, he doubted about her 'dozen other little things', otherwise she would have named them as well. But she had enough. Of course there had been an article here and there about the LDB before, but still… she could get them into some serious trouble, especially if she had more names.

"Yep, plus I'm completely onto your routine now," she added.

This made Logan pause. Oh no. She didn't just imply what he thought she implied?

"Wow," he commented dryly.

"Yeah. I figure I'll just track you, and you'll eventually lead me there anyway. So hey… I mean it would have been easier if you just have talked to me now, but I can do it the other way if you want," she told him.

Just who did she think she was? Logan wasn't sure if he should be amused by that last threat or annoyed. He was the heir to one of the biggest media conglomerates of this country. Did she really think he hadn't learned how to deal with obstinate reporters like her? She may have found out a lot about something she shouldn't have, and that did impress Logan, but if she thought that he would let her harass him, then she was in for a surprise.

"The other way," he repeated, for the first time since she had mentioned the LDB on safe terrain again.

"Yes," Rory confirmed.

"You tracking me," Logan continued.

"Yes," Rory once more confirmed.

"Following my every move," Logan still continued, not letting her out of his eyes.

"Yeah," Rory said, starting to frown. Oh yeah, now she was picking up on it that Logan wasn't defeated like she had thought he would be.

'Get up earlier for that, Ace', Logan smirked inwardly.

"I pick that way," he told her, pointing into the direction Jamie and the others had went off.

She was confused. "Okay but…"

"We can start right now if you want," Logan interrupted her, loving the way her eyes narrowed. "I'm heading back to my room. I can keep my window open in case you feel the need to sneak in and track me from the inside." Now it was his turn to sound sweetly.

"Thanks for the info," she snubbed, once again glaring at him.

Now that was much better, Logan thought. Everything in order again. "Absolutely," he said and turned to leave. But after a few steps he looked back at her, smirking. "And hey, good luck with that article! Sounds like a hell of a scoop." He silently laughed at the daggers she threw him with her eyes and turned away to go join his waiting friends.

He was still the master and commander in their little game.

* * *

His euphoria didn't last long. As soon as he had turned the corner, reality had brought him back to the harsh facts that they had a reporter after the LDB. And Ace wouldn't give up until she had her article. Especially not now after Logan had once again outmaneuvered her.

Logan's step faltered and he actually stopped, surprised, for a moment. Wait, _Ace_? Where had that come from? He didn't give nicknames to girls. Sure, he called them endearments but never by a nickname. A nickname would only flare up their hopes. Yet, he had to admit that 'Ace' was perfect for Rory. She sure was an ace reporter. His father would love her.

But that wasn't the point. The point was that Rory, ace reporter, was on the track of the LDB and she knew a few facts too many for them to be safe anymore. He needed to talk to Colin and Finn. The three of them were in charge of the next event. He would ask what they thought was the best way to deal with the situation at hand and then they could propose their suggestion to fellow members of the LDB.

Right. Logan quickly excused himself from his friends and hurried over to Finn and Colin's dorm. He didn't bother to knock. It would have been futile anyway. Finn most probably was still passed out, after all it was still quite a while before sunset, and Colin had mentioned something about writing a paper… which in turn meant he would ignore most interruptions and a simple knock on the door was such an interruption. Nevertheless, Colin would need to interrupt his work for a moment and Finn would have to face the day.

His friend's common room was empty. First, Logan went to Finn's room and opened the blinds. Finn moaned and tried to hide his head under his pillow. Familiar with the process of getting his Australian friend up, Logan moved to the bed and pulled away both pillow and bed cover.

Finn mumbled something.

"Get up Finn, we have a problem," Logan unrelentingly told him.

He got another few mumbled words.

"Up Finn," Logan ordered and went back to the window to open it. Finn hated the cold. And the weather here was always too cold for Finn's liking. Must be all the Australian sun in his youth that made him so sensitive. In five minutes tops, Finn would be up to close the window and once he was up he would stay up.

Logan turned to go to Colin's room.

"Come back later," Colin told him upon entering, not even looking up from his books.

"Sure, no problem. I'll come back once your name has been published all over the newspapers causing the police and FBI to show up on your door," Logan nodded. "I'll leave you to your paper then. See you in jail."

He left for their common room, knowing that Colin would soon follow him. He hadn't exaggerated with the police. The FBI probably wouldn't show up, but then, the thing the LDB had done nine years ago in Washington could still interest them.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Colin demanded to know, coming out of his room with a scowl on his face.

Logan just motioned him to wait while he went over to the bar. He needed a drink. They all would need a drink, once he had told them about Rory.

Colin was just about to say something when there was a shout coming out of Finn's room.

"Bloody Hell!!!!"

They both heard the window slamming down and then Finn appeared in the doorway with bloodshot eyes and a look in them that would have made anyone who didn't know Finn worry about his survival.

"You better have a damn good reason to wake me up at this ungodly hour and turning my room into a frigging freezer," Finn snapped at Logan.

Needless to say, Finn wasn't exactly a morning person. As an apology, Logan held up a glass full of Finn's patented hangover drink. Immediately, the murder in Finn's eyes died down a notch.

"Logan, could you finally tell me what you rambled about the police and FBI?" Colin asked impatiently, moving over to pour himself a drink as well.

Finn's eyes widened and he looked from Colin to Logan. "What?"

Logan knocked down the shot he had poured himself.

"What are you doing here anyway? Aren't you supposed to go get the tents and bring them up to the mountains?" Finn asked further with a frown.

"Yep, but there's a slight problem with that," Logan sighed and moved away from the bar to throw himself onto their couch.

""Why? George called yesterday that they're ready for transport. And we already paid them as well, so what's the problem?" Colin immediately asked then shook his head. "No, forget that, I want to know what you were talking about before!"

"It's the same problem," Logan told him.

"Mate, you better elaborate on that," Finn said groaning and sat down beside him.

"It means that a girl over at the Daily News is doing an article on the LDB," Logan finally told them.

Colin frowned. "That's all? That's not a first. That strange guy, your editor, has tried to get something on us for ages.

"Yeah, but contrary to Doyle, Ace is a really good reporter," Logan contradicted. "Which is evident in the fact that she just cornered me to get an inside scoop on the Brigade. Or the fact that she knows about the slogan In Omnia Paratus', the gorilla masks, the ball gowns and last but not least, Finn's SUV license plate."

That shut Colin up.

Finn though merely raised an eyebrow. "Ace?" he asked.

Logan looked at him confused. "Huh?"

"You said a girl from the paper. You just called her Ace," Finn clarified and cocked his head. "Who is she?"

Colin groaned and sat down in one of the chairs. "Oh no. Huntzberger! Couldn't you keep your mouth shut? The LDB is not a subject matter for pillow talk, for Christ's sake!"

Logan glared at him. "Hey! I'm not the one here who talked to the wrong person about the wrong things when I was too drunk to even remember my own name!"

"I was sixteen then! How long will you bring that old thing up?!" Colin immediately defended himself. "And don't change the topic. What did you tell that girl?"

"I told her nothing! Hell, I never even dated her." Logan corrected him. "Like I've told you. She's just good at what she does and apparently, she's determined to be the next Christiane Amanpour. Unfortunately, she decided to start her career with an exposé on the LDB. And I think we all agree that we can't afford that."

Colin shook his head. "Why don't we just ignore her? Or threaten her to not do this article."

Threaten Rory? No, he didn't think so. "We can't ignore her because she won't give it up. And no, we do not threaten her. First of all, our status doesn't mean anything to her, second, it probably would make Ace only more determined to get this article written and I sure as hell hope you just meant to threaten her with our names and power," Logan reasoned, sounding a little more forcefully than he had intended to.

"Of course, what did you think I meant? Kidnap her and threaten her life?" Colin asked, frowning. "What's wrong with you?" he asked Logan, giving him a scrutinizing look.

"Nothing," Logan mumbled, uncomfortable under Colin's scrutinizing eyes. Not that Finn's were any better.

"You never answered my question, mate… who exactly is that reporter girl?" Finn asked.

Logan sighed. "Rory. Rory Gilmore."

"Gilmore?" Colin asked.

Logan nodded. When he saw Colin about to ask something else he shook his head. "No, I don't think she's one of _the_ Gilmores. She doesn't look like it, she doesn't act like it and she doesn't speak like it."

"And how does she know you?" Finn asked further.

"You've met her as well. Twice actually," Logan told them.

"We did?" Colin asked surprised.

Logan nodded. "She was the girl we saw Marty talking to a few weeks ago at the coffee kiosk. And she was the girl we met in the Branford House when Finn was searching for that redhead with the short name."

"Oh yeah, I remember that redhead. What was her name again?" Finn exclaimed.

Logan and Colin ignored him.

"I don't remember. Marty?" Colin asked, frowning.

"Margarita Marty. Bartender at some of our parties," Logan provided with a sigh.

"Oh, that guy… but I still can't remember any girl," Colin said.

Logan just shook his head. It was pointless. They'd better get back to the problem at hand. "So what do we do now?"

The three friends were silent for a couple of moments.

"Well, why don't we first find out who that girl really is? Who knows, perhaps we find something that we can use as leverage with her," Colin eventually suggested. "You said her name is Rory Gilmore?"

Logan nodded. "Actually, Lorelai Leigh Gilmore."

"Lorelai?" Colin repeated.

"Yeah why?" Logan asked.

"Nothing… the name just sounds familiar," Colin answered slowly. "Okay, I'll see what I can find out about her."

"Do that. But I don't think it will help us stop this article," Logan said, his doubt evident in his voice. He was sure that nothing short of working out an agreement with Rory would prevent any damage.

Hmm…

"So why don't you enlighten us with the plan you are scheming in that head of yours, mate?" Finn asked with a smile.

"What plan?" Logan bluffed, looking over at him.

"The plan you're thinking about right now," Finn answered, his smile growing into a grin.

Logan sighed. Most people wouldn't give it to him, but Finn was very good at reading people, especially when he wasn't drunk. Luckily for the population, Finn was seldom fully sober. He had wanted to mull his idea over a little longer before presenting it to his friends. But Finn wouldn't stop bugging him until he knew what the plan was.

"I'm thinking that we should invite her to the next event," Logan said slowly.

"What?!?! Have you gone out of your mind?" Colin of course shot up like a rocket.

Finn just stared at him also, surprised into speechlessness.

"You want to invite an outsider to the event? A reporter? Logan, forget it! That's harebrained. Not to mention that the others would never agree!" Colin ranted.

"Logan?" Finn asked quietly.

"Look, fact is Ace has our names. With a little digging it probably won't be hard for her to get more names. You know the bunch. Sooner or later she will find someone who she easily can bring to talk to her. And then we're in deep shit," Logan started to explain his plan. "On the other hand, when I offer her that inside view she wanted, we can get her to agree to some conditions. Like keeping our names out of it."

"And you think she will just do that? Logan, don't be naïve!" Colin snorted.

Logan took a deep breath. Getting angry now wouldn't help anyone right now. "Yeah, I think she'll agree to it. In fact, I'm sure she will agree to it and keep her word. She's… reliable and trustworthy."

He didn't know why he was so sure about that. Why he felt so safe with her keeping their secrets. He barely knew her. Yet he would bet a lot of his money on her integrity.

"We offer her a one time chance after all. There had been articles about us before, but no one had something big to tell. She can observe from the inside, participate in an event and then write about it. That's a big news report, bigger than if she just writes an exposé. That's a chance she won't give up." Logan stopped for a moment, searching for more arguments in favor of Rory. "And it's a chance for us. We can prove that the Brigade isn't just a boring college student association, but one of a kind. Really, it's the best we can do with the situation at hand."

For a moment, Finn and Colin were silent, exchanging a look that made Logan feel slightly uncomfortable. Finally, Finn leaned forward. "Say, this reporter girl, is she hot?"

Not sure where this was heading to, Logan shrugged. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"So the answer is yes," Colin stated and narrowed his eyes. "You sure you don't sleep with that girl?"

Logan just threw him a death glare.

"Oh Colin, I think that is really the case actually. It seems to me that our Casanova here finally met someone who isn't so easily lured in by his undeniable charm," Finn said with a grin, then shook his head sadly. "Just what has this world come to when Huntzberger here has to get his newest interest into our dear secret society in order to get her into his bed?"

Unnerved, Logan stood up. "This has nothing to do with me wanting to date her or not. I'm just trying to save all of our hides, but sure, if you two idiots just want to mock me instead, fine! Just don't expect me to come visit you in jail!"

Colin started to smile. "I think you are actually right, Finn."

"Of course I am. I'm always right," Finn fired back.

Logan gave them both a killer glare before he turned away. "Fine. Be immature sixth graders. I have to get those tents on the way. Call me if you two have decided to grow up!" Not bothering to look at them again, he left, slamming the door behind him, ignoring his friends' laughter.

They were dead wrong. His idea to have Rory attend the next event had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Logan wanted to get her into his bed. Not that it would do the trick. He'd need more to get Rory to even consider such a thing. Not that he wanted that. Sure, that had been his first reaction after meeting her for the second time, but he had changed his mind.

Ace was turning out to be way too dangerous. He had just to look at how she had effectively cornered him this afternoon. Yeah, of course, she had looked gorgeous with her sparkling eyes and that victory beaming all over her face. Actually, she had radiated with beauty. And yeah, he was attracted to her. Hell, he'd be an idiot not to.

But that still had absolutely nothing to do with his plan. He wanted to help her with that article only to save the LDB a lot of trouble. _Not_ because she was so damn cute!

* * *

By the time he met Colin and Finn again in the pub that evening he had cooled down. The tents were up on their way to the woods. His costume and the smoking pipes for the event were ordered. And as time went by, he got more and more convinced that Ace's article would actually be a good thing. So he was already thinking about how to get the other members to agree to his plan. But then, if Colin and Finn were on his side, that shouldn't be too much of a problem. And he probably could get Steph to agree to it as well, and that would help a great deal in convincing the female members. After all, after Logan had time to think through the evidence Rory enumerated to him, he concluded that Steph was the one who ultimately had brought Rory on their backs. During the last event she had mentioned that she had met a girl in the restroom. And Steph had worn the gorilla mask then. So the girl must have been Rory. Oh yeah, Steph would be easily convinced to go along with his plan.

Finn was thankfully a lot drunker than he had been this afternoon when Logan joined him at their usual table.

"Where's Colin?" Logan asked Finn.

"Getting us a new round. Next one's on you," Finn told him.

Logan nodded and sat down.

"Tents on their way?" Colin asked, coming back with three drinks in his hands.

Once again, Logan nodded. "And you? Found out something about A… Gilmore?" Logan quickly corrected himself. He didn't want the discussion from before start again. As usual, the dispute earlier has been forgotten by now. On the other hand, they loved to mock each other and there was a slight risk that if they started with Rory again, he would once again be annoyed with his friends. And life was a lot less funny when he was annoyed with his two best friends.

Nodding, Colin sat down. "You were wrong about one thing… the girl actually _is_ one of the Gilmores. Actually, she seems to be Emily and Richard's granddaughter."

"She is?" Logan asked surprised. Okay, he had wondered about the name but he really wouldn't have pegged her for society. He frowned. Then why the hell did she rip into him for being rich? True, the Gilmores weren't as rich as the Huntzbergers, but they were still old money and well placed in society. "She doesn't act like one of us at all," Logan said quietly, more to himself.

Colin picked it up anyway. "That's because she isn't. I remember now why Lorelai sounded familiar. Her mother, Lorelai the Second, caused quite some scandal among us twenty years ago. She got pregnant with sixteen. Wouldn't that been bad enough… she refused to marry, or to have an abortion and so basically had her child out of wedlock."

"Wow! That really was some scandal!" Finn exclaimed.

"That's not all. One day the Gilmores came home and her daughter was gone, taking the baby with her of course. That's when she disappeared out of our world," Colin finished his report.

"Never to be talked of unless in hushed voices and with darting eyes," Finn summarized.

Colin nodded.

Logan said nothing. Now that Colin had mentioned it he could remember his grandparents talking about the Gilmore scandal as well, probably with his mother present as well. She sure liked gossip like that. Thoughtfully, he took a sip of his whiskey. So that was why she didn't impress like a socialite would. She had the blood, but not the way of life. Yet she was here at Yale. And her living in Branford House clearly implied the use of the family name and family connections. Or could it be that Rory hadn't had anything to do with it? Logan knew Emily. She sure could be one stubborn lady. At least now he understood her aversion to the rich a bit better. He would bet that whenever she did meet up with their folks that there had been comments about her pure existence. Some of them had to be pretty hurtful.

"Unfortunately though the rest of what you told us about her seems to be true. Never seen a whiter sheet. She was valedictorian at Chilton, has no people angry at her but some girl who is furious about some critique Gilmore wrote last year about her non-existent talent to be a ballerina. I read the article. It was fantastic, though I see why that girl got angry with her," Colin said with a grin. "Basically, if we really don't want to go low blow which I'm not keen at all to doing, then it seems as if your suggestion really is the best thing we can do about the impending article."

"Her being a Gilmore will probably help to convince the others. That's a start," Logan thought out loud. Yeah, that definitely would help. Colin still looked anything but enthusiastic though. Smiling, Logan threw an arm around Colin. "Look at it this way Colin… getting a reporter to attend is a risk, one the LDB never did so far. Remember, _In Omnia Paratus_."

"_In Omnia Paratus_!" Finn agreed and raised his glass.

Colin sighed. "Personally I think that our ancestors were right in never taking that risk. But what the heck… _In Omnia Paratus_!" He raised his glass as well and the three friends guzzled the alcohol.

"Ah, I see a redhead who's dying to meet me! If you'll excuse me," Finn said, his eyes fixing at some girl at the other end of the pub as he left without another word.

"And I've met a beautiful black haired when I went to get the drinks," Colin added and vanished into the direction of the bar, leaving Logan alone at their table.

Not for long though. Not three minutes later a blonde had appeared at his side to hit on him. And after the day he had Logan gladly let her distract him a little from the brunette, with the blue eyes, who occupied so many of his thoughts right now.

* * *

The next afternoon Logan tracked down Rory in the newsroom. Before he set the wheels to get her into the LDB event in motion he wanted to have her agreement on the conditions.

He went by her desk to his own and instantly turned on his computer to send her a message. While he waited for her response he watched her, the surprise at getting the message, then the slight frown. When she looked up he let her meet his eyes and he made sure with a secret smile that she understood that he was instant-messaging her. Finally, her answer arrived.

_Shoot._

Good girl. Quickly he typed his reply.

_I'll help you with your article. Get you the inside scoop. You just have to agree to a few conditions._

Her answer came immediately.

_What conditions?_

Right down to business. He smiled.

_The first condition is you have to agree before you know the conditions._

He glanced at her as she read his reply. Oh, she didn't like that. Not at all.

_What do you say, Ace? You in or out?_

He didn't wait to read her answer… didn't have to… he knew what it would be. Quickly, he turned off the computer and slipped out of the room again, but not without catching her smile.

A smile that made him smile as well.

Logan knew she wouldn't be able to resist.

* * *

TBC! 


	3. Butterflies

**Chapter 3: Butterflies**

**(You jump I jump Jack)**

In the end, it had been more difficult to convince the other Brigadiers to let Rory come to the event than Logan had anticipated. But with Colin, Finn and Steph joining forces with him, they did manage to get the majority to agree. The fact that Rory was a Gilmore helped a lot as well as the fact that it was indeed a risk the LDB nor any other student fraternities had ever dared to do so far. Yet, Logan had to admit that the reluctance the Brigadiers had shown had made him nervous. If Rory messed this up then he would have to face the consequences and he feared that it would mean his exclusion from the LDB. Something he really didn't want to face. And if his father would get wind of it…

Nope, nothing he would want to think about too intensely. Besides, he once again had this unexplainable certainty that Rory wouldn't disappoint him or the Brigadiers. Yeah, she seemed to live in a relatively safe bubble and so far he hadn't detected any tendency to risk much. But there was something lying under the surface in her or at least that was what he sensed in her and Logan itched to bring this out for the world to see. No, his Ace wouldn't disappoint him, he was sure of it. Still… the closer the event came, the more uncertain he got.

"Okay, the tents and the furniture are all set. We have five hundred lanterns, that should be enough. The litters are on their way up, as well as the mats. Seth says they're on the last details for the scaffold. Food and drinks are also on the way up or ordered to be delivered," Colin summarized, checking his list.

Logan had met up with Finn and Colin in their dorm to go over the last details for Wednesday.

Colin looked up from his list to glare at Finn. "And Finn, stay away from our food this time!!! Just because your sense of taste is totally ruined doesn't mean that we all have to suffer for it!"

"Mate, it's not my taste that is seriously lacking here! You Americans just have no idea what a good meal has to taste like!" Finn protested.

"That's because we don't have to use a ton of salt to make our food edible and tasty. But then, who else but crazy Aussies would want to eat kangaroos and crocodiles?" Colin pointed out, making a face.

"Boys," Logan sighed. He had heard this argument countless times before and undoubtedly would hear it again a few hundred times more. Most probably already in two days again when Finn once again would have managed to put a lot of salt into their food.

Letting out a tortured sigh, Colin shrugged. "All right, all right… so that leaves," he checked his list and sighed again. "Right. The reporter," he said with a glare in Logan's direction. "You already contacted her again?" he asked.

"No, not yet. But I plan to do it today, don't worry," Logan assured him. In fact the envelope for Rory was in his breast pocket right that moment... as it had been for the last couple of days.

"Don't worry," Colin muttered. "Good joke. We're about to be exposed and you say to not worry. You know, if this doesn't work they'll probably throw us out."

Yeah, Logan knew that and he didn't really need a reminder for that. Yet, he put on a carefree mask. "Stop worrying. Ace will pull it through, write a fabulous article and we once again can take care of our own business," he assured Colin for the umpteenth time.

"You heard the man. Ace won't disappoint us!" Finn helped and slapped Colin's back.

"You're both crazy," Colin just said and folded up his list. "I can only advise you to really enjoy this event because it probably will be our last." Thus said he got up and vanished in his room, slamming the door behind him.

Logan looked after him and sighed. "She'll pull it off. I'm certain of that," he quietly said, assuring, promising himself. Colin couldn't be that wrong... so wrong about her.

Now, Finn gave him a slap on his back. "I'm sure she will. She found us out, she cornered you and got you convinced to let her come, she's a Gilmore and she's hot, otherwise you wouldn't be so hooked on her, so of course she will make it. You know Colin, he's a worrynut. He'll get over it sooner or later."

Logan frowned up at him. "I'm not hooked on her."

Finn merely grinned. "Of course you're not. You, hooked on a girl? The great Huntzberger? Nah, never!"

"Right," Logan said, still frowning. He really wasn't hooked. How many times would he have to tell that to his friends?

"You ready to hit the road, Jack?" Finn asked and Logan was sure that the song reference was just another jab at him.

Glaring, he shook his head. "Nope. Got to take the note to Ace. I'll meet you later at the pub."

"Mate, you going to Reporter Girl? Why didn't you say so? Just a moment!" Finn exclaimed and bounced to his room.

Oh, no. No way. "Finn?" Logan asked warningly.

Finn came out, his jacket over his arm. "I'm coming with you of course! It's high time I get to meet this girl."

"No you won't," Logan refused immediately.

"Sure I will. After all, at least one of us needs to know how the charming Miss Gilmore looks like, in case something happens to you. Just imagine we would take the wrong girl up to the woods," Finn said and walked out of the dorm.

Logan groaned. It was clear that Finn's mind was made up. And once Finn made up his mind about something there was no way of convincing him otherwise. Reluctantly, he followed Finn out, not without calling out to Colin to meet up later in the pub though. After all, what was the problem in letting Finn come along? First of all, Logan didn't plan to meet Rory personally. He just knew that Rory's last class would end in, he quickly checked his watch, right, five minutes and then she most probably would head back to her dorm. He planned to wait outside until she got into her room and then stick the envelope to her window. They would wait until they were sure she got it and leave again. So why did he feel so adverse to Finn coming with him? By tomorrow the latest they would meet again anyway as Rory would ride with them.

Lost in thoughts he bumped into Finn. "Now, now, mate, watch were you're going. Uh, where are we going?"

Shaking his head, Logan led him to Rory's dorm.

* * *

"There she is," said Logan quietly to Finn and nodded to Rory as she walked by them in their hideout near her dorm.

Finn checked her over and let out a low whistle. "Whoa momma, that is one hot girl!" he commented, his eyes still roaming over Rory's body.

Annoyed, Logan nudged him. True, Rory looked good, but please... was it necessary to eat her up with his eyes like that?

Finn broke his admiring gaze to look at Logan with raised eyebrows. Slowly, a grin spread over his face and he held up his hands. "Just stating the obvious here, mate. Of course she's not a redhead so don't worry, I won't chase in your hunting grounds."

"I'm not worried," Logan pointed out. And then, after a beat, "_And_ I'm not interested in her like that. Not to mention that I've seen her first. Not that it matters, because…"

"You're not interested in her. Sure buddy," Finn finished for him, his grin getting bigger and bigger.

Logan scoffed and looked over to Rory's window just as he saw her going past it, a tired look on her face. He cursed. "Damn! Be right back," he told Finn and scurried over to her window. Carefully, he looked in to see her standing with her back to him, obviously listening to her messages on the answering machine. Perfect. He pulled the envelope out and stuck it to her window so that her name on it would face inwards. Then he slipped back to Finn. Quietly, they watched as she came into view again and then paused with a puzzled expression on her face. Slowly, she walked to the window and opened it to get the envelope. Then she disappeared out of their view.

Unconsciously, Logan left his hiding place to watch her move into his view again. He wanted to see her reaction to the note – and the blindfold. Unfortunately though all he could see was the back of her head, bowed over the note. He sighed. What a pity. He bet her face would have been worth a sight.

"Now that that's cleared," Finn said, slinging an arm around Logan's neck. "I'm bored and most of all I'm thirsty and alone. Pub, here we come!" With that he dragged Logan away.

Logan went willingly, but he did look back to Rory's window, a smile forming on his face. All the little worries he had felt over the last few days disappeared. Rory would prove to them just how brilliant his idea of letting her come had been. Yeah, the 108th Assembly of the Life and Death Brigade would indeed become quite a memorable event – if not the most interesting one he had ever attended.

* * *

Finn, still in a terrible mood for being up this early, pulled up in front of the parking lot at the Branford House.

"Okay, I'll be right back," Logan said, opened the door and got out, leaving the door open.

"Don't forget to check the blindfold!" Colin yelled after him.

Shaking his head, Logan winked his comment off and hurried to the vestibule where he had told Rory to wait for the LDB. And there she was, waiting, blindfold firmly in place and looking very uncomfortable. Well, he couldn't blame her for that, but it was undeniable that she looked cute like this. Smiling, he went over to her, careful though to stay hidden. He checked his watch. Exactly four o'clock in the afternoon, on the dot.

"Hey Ace, you ready?" he asked, but gave her no time to answer as he reached out to take her arm and pull her towards him. Not able to stop himself he breathed in her scent. He still had no idea what it was exactly, but he knew he would recognize it immediately, anywhere.

"Well…" Rory tried to say.

"Come on," Logan told her quietly and stroked down her arm to interlace his fingers with hers before pulling her after him.

"Logan, where are we going?" Rory asked, following him uncertainly.

Always ready to ask questions. Logan figured he would have to answer a lot of these over the following couple of days. Or avoid answering those questions. Strangely, he looked forward to it.

"To the car," he told her, leading her towards the waiting SUV.

"Car? What car? Finn's SUV? And where are we going? Will it be a long ride?" Rory fired off questions.

Logan laughed. "Careful Ace, don't waste all the munitions right away."

Rory scrunched up her nose. "Don't worry Huntzberger, no chance of that happening."

"Funny, I have no problem believing that," Logan told her and stopped at the car. He turned to her and led her in front of him. "Okay, careful with the head now, Ace," he told her and put his hand to her head as he helped her to slide into her seat so she wouldn't bang her head. Once she was safely in, he got in after her, closing the door behind him while he noticed the others giving her a curious look. He leaned forward to Finn. "Hit it," he told him, louder than necessary, fully knowing that it would hurt Finn's sensitive hearing.

And sure enough, Finn jerked a little and scowled. "Ah, not so loud!"

Steph broke her gaze away from Rory to glance beside her at Finn. "You're very auditory sensitive today," she commented with a smile.

"Oh, and your voice helps," Finn muttered, pulling out of the parking lot.

"Is the blindfold secure?" Colin asked worriedly, giving Rory a sceptical once over.

Logan rolled his eyes. Sometimes, Colin could really be annoying. "Secure and in place."

"Our anonymity's crucial, Logan. Crucial!" Colin insisted, ignoring the several eye rolls of his friends. Finn went even a step further and groaned.

Out of the corner of his eyes Logan saw Rory smile a little. "What's wrong with Finn?" she asked innocently.

'That little wrench!' Logan silently cursed before Colin gasped. "Great job with the blindfold Logan!"

Finn groaned again. "Could everyone keep it down, please?" he asked desperately.

"Can we remove the blindfold now?" Rory asked, ignoring Finn.

"We're also hiding our destination," Logan told her, not just a little pleased to annoy her with that information. It served her right after setting off Colin like that.

"We had to leave at this ungodly hour," Finn ranted to himself.

Rory's eyebrows shot up. "It's four in the afternoon," she pointed out.

Logan grinned. Yep, he would have been surprised if Rory had understood that. She looked more like the type that got up at sun break to get a little bit more of studying done before the first classes. "He's got a thing about the sun," he explained with a grin.

Finn nodded. "It's too bright."

There was that innocent smile at the corner of Rory's mouth again. "So how come you're not wearing your gorilla masks?"

For a moment, Logan felt the urge to throttle her. Thankfully for her though, Colin threw another fit. "She can see!"

Before Logan could reassure him once again Rory shook her head. "I can tell because you're voices aren't muffled, Colin," she explained and Logan pushed every vision of throttling her away - for now. Part of him though was impressed with her memory. Sure, she had met Colin and Finn before, but only briefly. Yet she had had no problem to figure their voices out. Okay, Finn with his Aussie accent was easy. Still, not bad.

Stephanie, who so far had watched the exchange with obvious amusement, laughed quietly. "She's sharp."

Ah, now finally Rory was taken aback. She frowned. "Who's the girl?"

"I've been told we've met. I've no memory of it," Steph told her.

Yeah, it had been hard to get Steph to even remember the evening. Still, Logan was sure that it had been her who ultimately had led Rory onto their tracks. It just had to be her. And it got finally confirmed as Rory nodded.

"Oh, the Gorilla Girl," she said, putting the pieces together.

Steph's face lit up. "Oh well, isn't that a pretty nickname?"

Yeah it was. And Logan got the distinct impression that Rory liked to nickname people. He smiled at her and leaned in a bit more, once more breathing her scent in. "Oh, by the way, this thing's overnight," he told her smugly, waiting for her reaction.

"Overnight?" she asked, surprised.

"Didn't I mention that before?" Logan asked sweetly.

"Oh, must have slipped your mind," Rory answered sarcastically.

Logan's smile grew. God, he laughed to rile her up. "That doesn't screw up anything for you, does it?"

Whoa, where had that question come from? He hadn't wanted to ask that. Her plans weren't of any interest to him!

"No," Rory said, stopping Logan's train of thoughts.

"No?" Logan repeated, having a hard time to believe that. Surely she had at least some studying to do or some study group to attend. And she could have a boyfriend… Nah, he would have gotten wind of that, wouldn't he?

"Nope," Rory once again assured.

"Hmm," Logan said. "Loose schedule. Good."

It was good. That meant it would be a lot easier to whisk her away to other surprises. Wait, what was he thinking?! There would be no other surprises. She'd write her article and then their paths would separate again, only to perhaps run into each other here or there.

"We like our schedules loose, like our women," Finn commented and Logan threw him a glare via the rear mirror. He should stay out of this.

Colin though nodded as well in the back. "Clever," he mentioned, looking a lot calmer than in days. Logan threw him a glance. He wondered what had done the deed to calm him down after all.

"My God, it's early," Finn groaned for another time.

Beside Logan, Rory chuckled. Logan looked at her and the smile on her face. Well, at least someone was amusing herself.

* * *

Three _long_ hours later they finally arrived at their destination. Rory had been pretty quiet, just listening to the light banter between Logan and his friends. It had surprised Logan. He had thought that Rory probably would use the time on the ride to fire questions after questions. But he was glad that she held back as it had done a great thing to get Colin back to a supportive level and Finn had time to get more of his bearings together as well.

Finn drove past several other cars and parked right at the front, near the table with the lanterns on it that they had prepared for the arriving Brigadiers. And which they would need as it had already gotten dark. As soon as the car stopped, Finn had unbuckled his seat belt and was out of the car.

"This mountain air has revivified me!" he screamed and letting out a crazed laughter, he ran off and vanished in the dark.

Logan laughed and got out to look after him, shaking his head. "Make sure he doesn't run off a cliff," he warned Colin and Steph.

Sighing, Colin nodded and got out of the back. "Stephanie, it's your turn," he reminded the blond girl who had gotten out as well.

Steph rolled her eyes and nodded. "Finn!" she screamed. "You slow down!" Not loosing time though she grabbed herself a lantern and hurried after him, Colin following her closely.

Logan went around the car and helped Rory climb out on her side. "You okay?" he asked.

Rory nodded and took a deep breath. "I smell trees," she stated, looking around her, despite the blindfold.

"Oh, nothing gets past you." Logan smiled and grabbed a lantern as well before turning back to Rory. Carefully, he led her along the path that would get them to the clearing where their tents were set up.

"So… The firing squad is just up ahead," Rory asked after going a few feet.

Logan laughed. "Yup, and there's a line. Damn," he answered her lightly.

Instead of playing further along though Rory sighed. "Seriously Logan, is the blindfold coming off, or am I Patty Hearst-ing it the whole trip?" she asked tiredly.

Patty Hearst-ing? No, of course not! The blindfold was only a safeguard... so she would not know their destination. "It's coming off," he assured her and stopped her. "It's coming off right now," he told her and true to his words, pulled it off, careful that her hair wouldn't get tangled in it.

He watched as she opened her eyes and let her eyes adjust to the view that laid in front of her, as she slowly drank in the sight of the turn of the century atmosphere. From where they stood, they had a beautiful view of the clearing with its white tents and the many lanterns lightening it up.

"Oh my…" she whispered, awed.

Yeah, oh my… thought Logan and swallowed. Quickly, he moved past her to lead her down to the others while he tried hard to ignore his slightly faster beating heart.

It took a while until Logan trusted himself to speak again and by then they had arrived on the clearing and he was leading her towards her tent. "Is this what you expected?" he asked, trying to sound casual.

"No, not at all what I expected," she answered, her voice still full of amazement.

Logan smiled. "Let me guess what you were thinking: sleeping bag, flashlights, keg, three boxes of stale biscuits, half eaten bag of Oreos, some Doritos and a bong." He stopped in front of her tent and turned to face her.

"That may be exactly what I pictured," she answered, smiling up again.

His heartbeat accelerated once more and hurriedly, Logan tried to remember what they were talking about. Right. "You can apologize later. This is yours." He turned to open the tent.

"Mine?" she asked, surprised.

Logan nodded, still holding it open for her. "Not much closet space, but the view's decent," he tried to joke, failing miserably though.

Yet, Rory smiled. "It's cosy," she commented and finally went past Logan into her tent.

The urge to follow her in grew overwhelmingly. Gritting his teeth, Logan straightened himself. What the hell was wrong with him? He had duties to fulfil, things to check on. Right. "Festivities start in half an hour," he informed her, rather shortly, but he couldn't help that. Not waiting for an answer, he let the flap fall close and he left to… whatever. What mattered was that he got away from her before he got the wrong ideas.

Like barging in there and ripping her clothes off and then kissing her senseless.

* * *

So far everything had worked out smoothly and the event, though it had only just started, looked like it would be a full success. Of course Rory hadn't shown up so far and Logan awaited for her arrival on the scene impatiently. He wanted to see how she mingled with this crowd. Probably, she would feel like an outcast because he deliberately hadn't ordered her a costume for this night. Because everyone had agreed that for tonight she noticeably had to be marked as the 'foe' as Colin had worded it, so everyone knew that he was talking with an outsider and a reporter. And so everyone knew how she looked like for tomorrow when she would be dressed like one of them. Logan just hoped that the ball gown would fit her. But then, he had a good eye for sizes and usually the attire he ordered always fit like a second skin.

'No, no, bad idea Huntzberger! Do not think about Rory and second skin, or skin at all. Especially naked skin.' Argh!!! There it was, the vision of a naked Rory. Not that it was something new. He had the same vision ever since he had met her. It had enticed him. Haunted him. Taunted him. And he didn't need it. It was hard enough to not get the wrong ideas in his head. Rory wasn't there as his date. As his guest, yeah, but not as his date. He couldn't risk thinking of her in that way. For one, because she was too damn annoying and dangerous to get too involved with. For another thing, because he found himself liking their light banter they had going on whenever they did meet and somehow, he doubted that he could have at least that with her should he indeed date and dump her. After all he wasn't friends with anyone with his past conquests. And most important was that he didn't want the Brigadiers to get the wrong impression. Rory wasn't there because Logan Huntzberger held any interest in her – or had the hots for her like Finn continued to insist. She was there because she was a damn good reporter and as such, needed to be somehow tamed before she would get them all in trouble.

Right. So to get these tempting thoughts out of his head he better look for some female company.

"Oh Logan, here you are! We've looked all over for you!" A voice chanted into his ear as a hand sneaked under his arm.

Perfect. Logan turned to smile at – hmm, what was her name Tammy? Tamara? Something like that.

"Hey there beautiful," he greeted. "Here I am."

Tamara, or whatever her name was, blushed and giggled. Inwardly, Logan sighed. Rory would have given him a death glare for such a shallow remark. But then he would never dream of addressing his Ace so lamely.

"You remember my friend here? Ginger?" Tamara asked and pointed to an equally blond girl standing beside her, smiling sweetly at him.

"Of course. Always a pleasure to see you both beauties," Logan answered smoothly. Of course it was a lie. He couldn't remember Ginger, but then it was very well possible that he had met her on another party. Girls like her just were hard to differentiate.

"See Talara? Told you he would remember our night in LA," Ginger told her friend.

Talara? What kind of name was that? And LA? Which time in LA?

"What are you doing here all alone? You looked so lonely!" Talara asked him, moving closer towards him.

"That's right," Ginger said and moved to Logan's other side, hooking herself under. "So we thought we'd come and save you from it."

"And that was very thoughtful of you two ladies," Logan answered with a smile. True, they were bimbos, but they would do for tonight.

He was just about to lead them towards one of the three bars when he sensed something that made him look up, right into the direction of Rory's tent. There she was, moving a bit uncertainly towards the crowd. He watched as she stopped a couple to probably ask them some questions but they left her standing. Logan sighed inwardly. The Brigadiers had let her come. But it didn't look as if they were very willing to cooperate. The idiots didn't get that the easiest way to deal with that article was to let it happen and give her so much unimportant details that she'll forget all the big questions. Ah, she was approaching Colin and a group of his friends. Logan looked a bit closer. Great. Robert. He couldn't stand the guy. Nor could Finn. Unfortunately though Robert was a friend of Colin who he had met in the Zugerberg boarding school. Robert was the worst snob Logan had ever met and he had been one of the biggest opponents in letting Rory come and attend this event. He just hoped that Colin would hold Robert back a little. If that idiot hurt Rory with his haunty comments, there was no guarantees on how she'd react. Probably by ruining them all with her article. Nervous, he watched as she chatted with the group, how her nose wrinkled in puzzlement. Ah, he bet Colin had just explained to her the no 'e' rule for tonight. Good. If she followed that it would be easier for her to mingle with the group. Of course only few followed the rule, especially the longer the night would go on, but still… it would show an effort on her side that he was sure would get appreciated.

"Logie, is everything all right?" Tamara, no, Talara asked, tugging at his arm.

Irritated, Logan looked down at her. He hated when someone called him 'Logie'. Unfortunately, a lot of his dates found that cute. "I'm fine," he assured her, and a bit shortly, looked up to check on Rory again. She had left Colin's group in the meantime and was heading towards one of the cocktail tables.

"Ladies, if I remember correctly we wanted to get some drinks, right?" Logan asked his two companions and without waiting for an answer, dragged them towards Rory. Well, not toward her, but into her direction. A few feet away he stopped them, grabbed some flutes and held them out to the blond girls while he kept Rory in the corner of his eyes. He frowned.

She was talking to Stephanie. To a drunk Steph. That wasn't good. Steph couldn't hold her liquor. And once she had a few drinks too much she talked way too much. Hence this article that was looming over them all. Damn it, they had told Steph specifically to stay away from Rory and to not, under any circumstances, talk with her. There was no telling what things Steph shouldn't mention were just being spilled to Rory. He was just contemplating what to do about the situation when he caught Rory glancing at him before turning back to Steph and shaking her head vehemently.

Hmm. He wondered what that had been about. Something, like the ringing in his ears, told him that they weren't talking about the LDB. Interesting. And slightly worrisome. What would those two talk about him? Steph, after knowing him since they played together as babies, knew a lot about him he didn't exactly wanted Rory to know. And as Steph was drunk… oh no. They needed to be stopped immediately.

Before he could go over to them though Stephanie all of sudden looked very worried and turned to walk away from Rory. Thankfully, Rory didn't go after her. It was stupid of her because that would have been her chance to get juicy details on the LDB, but Logan didn't mind at all. Sighing in relief he watched as she approached another group – which left her standing after perhaps thirty seconds. Poor Ace. She had a long evening ahead of her.

"Oh look Logie! They're bringing the food. Let's go grab something!" Ginger exclaimed and she and Talara dragged Logan away. He let them, but only because the arriving food meant that he had some host duties to fulfil.

* * *

Almost two hours had passed since Logan had gone to take care of the food and since then he hadn't seen Rory again. And not because he hadn't looked for her. His duties had perhaps taken another half an hour and ever since then he couldn't find her – nowhere. Where the hell was she? She had no idea where they were so he doubted that she ran off. Besides, she hadn't struck him as a quitter. He even had gone to her tent to see if she had hid herself in there but no trace of her.

He was worried, and he got more worried by each second that passed and he still hadn't spotted her. What had happened for heaven's sake? Had some of the idiots said something to her? Was she hurt? There weren't bears in these woods, were there?

"Finn!" Logan called out, having spotted his friend. His very drunk friend. "Have you seen Rory?"

"Who?" Finn asked dumbfounded.

"Rory!" Logan repeated, unnerved. "The girl who writes the article? The girl who came here with us?"

"Oh, Reporter Girl." Finn frowned. "Nope. Haven't seen her." He paused. "She here? What she's doing here?"

"Forget it," Logan muttered and wandered off, scanning the crowd. She just had to be here somewhere. But where? Damn it!

"Hey Logan what's wrong? You look like Mitchum had just disinherited you," Colin said, stepping to him with a frown between his eyes.

"Have you seen Rory?" Logan asked, ignoring Colin's remark.

"Not in a while, no. Why?" Colin asked, still frowning.

"Damn it. She vanished. I can't find her anywhere. Where the hell could she be?" Logan ranted, looking desperately around.

The frown between Colin's eyes deepened even more if that was possible. "Calm down buddy. She's down that path there," he said, pointing to a path that led away from the clearing.

"What?! Why didn't you say so?!?! You said you haven't seen her! That's not funny Colin!!!" Logan hissed, glaring at his friend.

Colin held up his hands. "You asked if I've seen her which I haven't since she went down that path a while ago. You haven't asked if I know where she is Logan. If you had, I would have told you." He stopped to glare back at him. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

Logan stared at him for a long moment before he looked down. "I have no idea. Sorry. And thanks," he told Colin quietly and, with a last look towards the path, turned away.

It was a good question. He had no idea what was wrong with him. But probably it was the stress of organizing this thing and at the same time worrying that Rory would be the cause why he and his friends got ejected from the LDB. And he hadn't eaten so far. Yep. That must be it. He needed something to eat. Determined, he walked over to fill himself a plate. Briefly, he wondered if Rory had eaten yet, but he pushed the thought away before he started to fill a second plate for her. Rory wasn't his date. Rory wasn't his anything. Well, she was his problem for the moment, but once this was over that too would be the case no more. And then he'd see to it that he'd stay far, far away from that girl. She made way too many problems for Logan.

Groaning, he remembered that he had yet to tell Rory the conditions for her article. Sighing, he took his plate in one hand and with the other grabbed a lantern before he headed down the path. And sure enough, a few steps and there he could already see her, sitting against a tree, the camp still in view, at least from her spot. The light from the camp was just bright enough that she wasn't sitting in the dark but still… it wasn't exactly the safest place for her, especially for her alone. On the other hand, it was a perfect spot to make out a little.

_No_!!!! No such thoughts! Grinding his teeth, he pushed the thought of her luscious lips away.

"How goes it, pariah?" he asked as he approached her.

Startled, she looked up from her notes. "Logan?" she asked, a bit uncertain. And, if he wasn't wrong, a little bit scared. Good. She should be scared for sitting here alone, an easy target for beasts and rapists and muggers and… and he was ridiculous.

"Word was a bear dragged you off," he instead answered her lightly.

"No bear. I just wanted a quiet place to collect my thoughts," she told him.

"You found it," Logan said a little bit grudgingly. He wouldn't forget the scare she had given him so easily.

In the meantime as he had reached her, he put the lantern down and climbed over the tree-trunk to sit down beside her, carefully balancing his plate.

"Thanks, I've eaten," she told him.

Why would she think that the plate was for her? Was she so accustomed to being served? "Good," Logan said, smiling. "This is for me. Sorry you're not getting much from the group." He took a forkful of the mashed potatoes. Ugh, way too much salt. "Took a little arm-wrestling to get them to agree to let you come in the first place," he told her and tried the meat.

"I don't need their cooperation," Rory informed him a bit defensively. "I've already filled two notebooks without their cooperation. Half of one without using the letter 'e'." She made a slight pause and looked at him. "But I could use yours," she told him, her eyes staring a hole into him.

Logan smiled inwardly. Yep, that was his Ace. Never letting an opportunity pass to ask him, and with that actually causing a hole in his stomach. And he couldn't wait to see the notes without any 'e'. Difficult for a writer to work without e's but he trusted Ace to pull it off. As for his cooperation though… well, she had a little bit longer to wait for that. Perhaps if she hadn't given him this scare, but like that… Nope, he'd let her wait and fidget a little while longer.

So he made a face as he chewed on the meat. "Way too much salt on this."

"I mean, this is pretty incredible, but it's just a preamble to the big stunt tomorrow, right?" Rory asked, her eyes shining.

Where the hell did she get all that information? Logan pushed another forkful into his mouth. "It's Finn," he told her, still making a grimace. "He's Australian. They like salt." It really was disgusting. And he'd better see to it that he was there when Colin found Finn in order to prevent a murder.

Rory though wasn't so easily distracted. "How do you pay for this? Are there dues, or do you chip in, is there any alumni sponsoring it? How is it organized? And what is happening tomorrow? Is it just as big, or bigger? And do people know that you're here? Park Rangers or the landowner? Where are we? Are we still in Connecticut? And your answer cannot include the word salt," she finished, shaking her pen at him.

Wow, she sure had her questions outlined. And it were damn good questions which he would have to think hard on how to answer her and not give too much away. When the time for giving answers had come, which wouldn't be for a while yet. But it was clear that Ace wouldn't give up so soon, so it looked like it was time to give her the ground rules. After all, that was why he had come here, right?

"Okay, I think it's time to fill you in on the conditions of you being here," he told her and put the plate away. He was still hungry, but he would need to find something with less salt in it.

"Okay," Rory sighed.

"First," Logan started and quickly grabbed her camera to hold it up. "No pictures."

"Hey," Rory protested and reached for it, but Logan stashed it into his pocket.

"Aw, you'll get it back at the end of the trip," he promised her before going over to the next condition. "Second, no names."

Rory threw him an annoyed glare. "I'm not exactly being introduced to anyone as it is," she pointed out sarcastically.

No, that she wasn't. "Third, no physical descriptions of any of us," he continued, staring intensely into her blue eyes. This was important. "There are authority figures up and down Connecticut trying to nab us for things we may have done in the past. Naughty things."

Rory looked almost offended at him. "Keep you anonymous," she assured him.

Good girl. Logan frowned. "What number am I on?" he asked her.

"Just at third," Rory told him.

Right. "Fourth, no identification of our location."

Ah, there was that annoyed glare again. "I don't know where we are," she pointed out.

Logan smiled. "Fifth."

"You're going to run out on –ifths," Rory told him hopefully.

Logan's smile grew before he got serious. This was a very important point after all. "Most important condition of all: You must agree not to interfere with the integrity of the event."

Eager, Rory leaned forward. "What is the event and how could I interfere?" she countered.

But Logan wouldn't allow any distractions. Not now. "So you agree?"

Sighing, Rory leaned back again. "Yes, I agree," she confirmed with a nod.

Good. Logan took his plate once again and tried the vegetables. Ah, finally something edible. Probably because Finn only ate something green if it had a lot of sugar in it and wasn't healthy at all. Behind them, some of the brigadiers started in on a song and Logan bet that Finn had been the initiator for that.

"It's pretty," Rory commented, a smile on her face as she listened to the singing.

"It's drunk," countered Logan dryly.

Rory shrugged. "Well, it sounds pretty." She defended herself. "I like it," she quietly told him.

Logan looked at her, at how her entire face shone in the soft light of the lantern and for a moment it stole away his breath. Why was she so damn beautiful? Everything would be so much easier if she wasn't so damn beautiful. Or so intelligent. Or so… different.

He tore his eyes away from her and deliberately took some more of the salted meat. Ugh. But it did help him to get back to his senses. "I didn't say I didn't like it," Logan told her, taking another forkful, of the potatoes this time. Ugh, just how could Finn eat that?

"Logan?" Chanted a voice from up the clearing.

They both looked up and Logan inwardly groaned when he saw the bimbo twins from earlier waiting for him.

"Yeah?" he called back but looked at Rory. A small frown had appeared on her forehead. He wondered why. It wasn't as if she was in any way interested in him. That much she had made clear enough on previous occasions. On the other hand, there had been that glance at him before when she had talked to Stephanie.

"You coming?" asked Ginger in a slightly disapproving tone, he thought. He bet if they were closer they could also have seen her glare at Rory.

Honestly, he didn't want to leave Rory. He enjoyed being with her and having a decent conservation with a girl for once in a while. And that was just why he had to leave. "I'm coming," he called back and stood up.

He put the lantern a bit closer to her. "I'll leave the light for you Ace, I won't need it," he told her, looking briefly into her eyes. He really didn't like the idea of leaving her back there, alone and unprotected. But it wouldn't be good if he stayed.

"Hurry up darling!" Talara called.

Once again, irritation flared up in Logan. He had exchanged a few words with the girls, nothing more. Nothing that gave them the right to dictate his time or to call him any endearments. Or to give Rory the wrong impression. On the other hand, what did it matter what impression Rory had? Right. Nothing at all. In fact, it was probably for the best if she indeed got the wrong impression. So he flashed her a last grin and turned around to head up towards the girls. Spreading his arms, he smiled at them as well, though it wasn't an honest smile at all. "Here I am!" he exclaimed as he joined them.

Immediately, they hung themselves on his arm again. And once again he let them, this time though only until they were out of Rory's eyesight. Then he ditched them, making it clear to them that he wasn't at all interested in them and that there was no way that he'd spend the night with them. They weren't too pleased and left with a huff for which Logan was grateful. Not wasting another thought about them he went in search of Colin.

He found him, once again in the company of Robert. Great.

"So I've seen you found yourself a wonderful threesome for tonight, right Logan?" Robert asked him with a smirk.

Reproachfully, Logan looked at him. "Well what can I say Robert? They can't get enough of me. No wonder with the idiots that are around otherwise."

Robert frowned and glared at him. "Please. Who after all would want those two? They've slept with half of the male population at Yale who has a noticeable portfolio. I must say I'm kind of surprised that you need to refer to them as dates."

"That's why I don't, but please, go ahead and get them. After all, you hardly could have been on their list so far. Of course I'm not sure if even they consider your portfolio worthy of their attention," Logan answered him sweetly, the tone though hard as steel.

Before Robert could say something else, Colin sighed. "Was there something you wanted Logan?"

Logan took a deep breath. "Yeah, in fact there is." Not wanting Robert to hear a word he said he dragged Colin a few feet away, without another glance at the obnoxious bastard.

"Seriously Logan, why do you always have to talk to Robert like that?" Colin asked, shaking his head.

"Because he asks for it," Logan told him briefly. "Listen, two things: First, don't eat any of the food but the vegetables."

Colin made a face. "Thanks, already too late for that. I'm going to kill him once I get my hands on him."

"Yeah, yeah," Logan laughed, rolling his eyes. If he had gotten a dollar each time he heard Colin say that he'd be rich by now. Well, richer anyway. "Then I wanted to ask you a favor."

"A favor?" Colin asked, mistrustfully.

"Relax, it's no big deal. Just go to Rory and get her away from there, okay?" Logan asked.

Colin frowned at him. "Why?"

Logan sighed. "Because it's not too safe down there, away from the group like that. If she doesn't want to come back fine, then stay with her and let her ask you some questions."

"Not safe? Logan, that's ridiculous. This is New Hampshire, my family's land to be exact, not the jungle," Colin protested, looking at Logan as if he was crazy.

It didn't help that Logan felt more than just a little ridiculous, but he couldn't help but be worried about Rory, down there, alone.

"Just humor me, will you?" Logan told Colin, unnerved.

But Colin still resisted. "And then these questions... Why should I give her any answers, huh? Do I have to remind you that I was against this whole idea of yours right from the beginning?"

"And do I have to remind you that you still owe me for the time I bailed you out of that mess in London?" Logan asked sharply, before he sighed. "Look, all I'm asking you is to spend some time in the company of a beautiful, intelligent girl, that's hardly too much asked, isn't it? Talk to her, keep her away from the wrong people, and feed her some answers that will tell her enough to satisfy her but not enough to get us in trouble. You're the would-be lawyer among us, which means that you're the best at evasive answers."

"Says the guy who has to ditch reporters and their impertinent questions since he is able to talk," Colin muttered.

"Will you go to her now or not?" Logan asked, ignoring Colin's comment.

Colin let out a tormented sigh. "Okay, okay, I'll go. But then you'll never mention London again!"

"Never ever, not even on my deathbed," Logan seriously promised.

"Hmpf," Colin said and, with a last glare at Logan, grabbed himself a bottle of champagne and vanished down the path to Rory.

Feeling a lot calmer now, Logan went to look for Finn. He had no intention of finding himself a girl for tonight anymore so Finn was usually the best alternative for still having a fun night.

* * *

The first thing he did after a long, restless night was getting himself a hangover drink. Problem with having a fun night with Finn was that it always ultimately ended with him having a head the size of North America the next day. A night filled with naughty dreams about a certain blue-eyed reporter hadn't helped at getting his head to stop pounding either. Thankfully though, being friends with Finn had already taught him early several ways to get a clear head again and he gratefully used some of those ways now. An hour later he felt like a reborn man. Right on time as he had to get ready for today's activities. He had already made a round to check on the preparations for the various games and of course, the big jump. Everything was in order and ready for the decadent Brigadiers.

Clad in his tux, Logan made his way over to Rory's tent. It was still silent in the camp but for a few light snores as most were still sleeping. Soon though they too would get up and get dressed. It should give him enough time to prepare Rory for the event as well. He doubted that she had already found the big gift box with her gown for today under her bed. Otherwise she surely would have mentioned it to him yesterday.

Briefly he wondered how the rest of her night had been. He hadn't seen her or Colin for that matter since he had sent Colin to her. For a moment a terrible thought came to Logan. What if they had spent the night with each other????

No, no way. Rory wouldn't do that. She wasn't a one night stand type of a girl. And Colin wouldn't do that to him either. After all, it was crystal clear that Logan had seen her first. _If _he ever wanted to get together with her, which he didn't want of course.

Ugh, this was giving him a headache once again.

He just arrived at Rory's tent when she came out of it, looking fresh as the morning. Whatever else happened last night, she surely hadn't gotten drunk. He wondered if that was a general rule for her or if this was because she was here on business.

She caught sight of him and her eyebrows rose up. "Another day, another sartorial surprise," she commented dryly, giving him a once over.

And Logan couldn't deny that he liked how she looked him up and down, apparently appreciating what she saw. Shaking his head at himself he stepped to her. "Start getting ready yourself," he told her, a lot more brusque than he had intended to.

She wrinkled her nose in confusion, like she apparently always did if confused. At least, he had seen her doing this quite some times now. "I am ready," she told him.

Logan gave her a doubtful once over. "Dressed like that?" he asked.

Rory gave him a puzzled look. "Well, I didn't have the 'It's an overnight thing' warning, so unless you want me to fashion something out of pine cones, this is it," she reminded him with a sweet smile.

Logan would have appreciated the originality of her comeback but right now he was too busy to fight the vision of her clad in nothing but pine cones. Desperately, he tried to think of something to get that enticing vision out of his mind. Colin, drunk and dressed in a pink dress. Nope. His father giving him that look that told Logan just what a disappointment he was. Nope. Finn naked, with blue paint all over his body, and he did mean _all _of his body. Ah right, that had done the deed and Logan now had to suppress a shudder.

"That clothing is going to interfere with the integrity of our event and you agreed not to interfere with the integrity of our event," Logan reminded Rory, his voice though still slightly husky.

"All I've got is a washbowl, a towel and a toothbrush," Rory protested, annoyed.

Logan smiled again. "Is that all you've got?" he asked her, looking intensely at her then nodded towards her tent. "Look again Ace."

Rory gave him a questioning look and then slowly went back into her tent, the flap falling close behind her. After a minute, Logan heard a gasp from inside. Smiling, Logan sat down on a chair beside her tent and grabbed himself some of the berries that were in a bowl on a nearby table to wait until she got dressed.

* * *

And wait he did. What the hell could take her so long? It was simply a dress she had to put on, not some medieval costume. And it had a zipper and elastic bands, not thousands of buttons. So what on earth was taking her so long? They were going to be late! While he had waited there he had watched as most of the other Brigadiers, who were all dressed up, had left to go to the big clearing where the event would take place. And Rory, who simply had had to put on a dress, still hadn't come out yet.

Ugh, women!

Finn passed him and Logan stopped him. "Hey Finn!"

"Huh?" Finn frowned and blinked.

"Can you please hold us a place?" Logan asked him. "I'm still waiting for Rory to get dressed."

"Rory?" Finn asked with a frown.

Logan sighed. "Just do it, please?"

Finn nodded and winked it away before he left to go join the others.

Impatiently, Logan grabbed himself some more berries. Two minutes. He would give her two more minutes and then he would go in there and drag her with him, no matter in what a state of dress she was.

At that moment she appeared in the entrance of her tent, smiling uncertainly at him and all breath was knocked out of him. Logan took one look at her in her pale blue ball gown and he felt all thoughts leaving him, but one.

_WOW…_

He had always known she was beautiful but in that dress, she looked… she looked… Wow.

Growing aware that he was staring, he jumped up.

"I got your event integrity right here, mister," Rory said, somehow timidly.

God, she really had no idea how breathtakingly beautiful she was. She seemed honestly worried about her appearance. Stupid, silly girl. She would just have to take a closer look to a certain lower region of his body and she'd see plainly just how much this vision in blue affected him.

Right.

Hastily, he buttoned his tux jacket over the embarrassing evidence of his obvious attraction to her. Then he cleared his throat and stepped, somehow uncomfortably, towards her. "Yep," he assured her and he just couldn't stop his voice from being husky, "I got an eye for dress sizes." He tentatively touched her at the small of her back and it spread like a jolt of electricity through him, so strong that he quickly pulled his hand away again and stepped around her to point into the right direction. "We go this way," he told her and then started to move, fully aware how impolite he was by leaving her no choice than to nearly run after him.

But he honestly didn't trust himself neither near her nor with her within his eyesight. He needed a moment to cool himself down, to get his thoughts straight again and he couldn't do that with this gorgeous creature in touchable or seeable nearness.

Thankfully, by the time they reached the field, Logan had managed to cool his body down. At least some.

"Come on, hurry," he told Rory, somewhat impatiently, as he saw the others Brigadiers already in place for the opening of the big event. Colin had even already started with his speech.

"You try running in a crinoline!" Rory protested but did quicken her pace.

"We're late," Logan pointed out and increased his pace a little bit more. He spotted Finn who had, true to his word, saved them a place in the front line.

"For what? The ritual sacrifice?" Rory smirked, trying to keep up.

"I do declare here gathered, one hundred and eighth assembly of the honorable Life and Death Brigade," Colin said the traditional opening for their events just as Logan and Rory sneaked to their places where Finn handed them wordlessly each a glass of champagne.

"He's using 'e's!" Rory whispered.

"Shhhh!" Logan shushed her.

"Please raise your glasses," Colin asked the gathered group and rose his own. "In Omnia Paratus!"

"In Omnia Paratus!" echoed the group.

Logan turned to Rory and held her his glass to her lips while he brought hers to his to take a first sip. He looked into her eyes, shining brighter and bluer than he had ever seen them. Probably because of the dress. God, he had had thought that the dress would suit her just fine, but he had never dreamed that it would suit her this good. It was simply the perfect gown for her.

Once they had untangled their arms again, Logan leaned in to her. "Now you might want to cover your ears," he warned her in a whisper as the big gong was being uncovered behind her.

"Why?" Rory of course asked though.

Too late now. The gong vibrated, causing a loud clang. The Brigadiers let out loud cheers and started to rush away toward the different games waiting for them.

Grinning widely at Rory's amazed and surprised look Logan backed away towards the entertainment as well. "And to think some groups just go bowling!" he shouted at her with a smirk and then turned to go enjoy himself with the others. He just loved this part of the events!

* * *

The Brigadiers, as well as Logan, were having a lot of fun. Despite his constant vigil on Rory, who in contrast to the others didn't seem to be having much fun. No wonder, she had yet to participate in a game. Logan wasn't quite sure if she kept herself on the sidelines because she felt she had no right to participate in the games, which was ridiculous, or if she just was so… reluctant to have a little fun in life.

Perhaps it was a combination of both. Whatever it was, he wished that she could shrug it off because the Brigadiers could easily judge her reluctance as criticism. Or worse, aversion. Of course he could go to her and force her to participate, but he wanted Rory to do that on her own. Too bad that it probably wouldn't happen though.

He was playing with the paintballs together with Finn when he saw Rory approaching a group of players standing a few feet away from them. Naturally, he saw her asking them a question, but she got dismissed. Logan sighed. He was sure that if she'd participated a bit more they would be a lot friendlier to her – and more forward with answers.

Rory without a doubt was a good reporter already but she still had a lot to learn.

Ah, now she had spotted them and was heading towards them. Just as she reached them, Finn sighed beside him.

"Pull! Pull! All right, I'm bored," he said. "I want to be the target."

Logan laughed and brought his gun up to aim. "You're always a target Finn," he told his friend as he took aim.

Finn shrugged. "In Omnia Paratus," he commented and walked off, undoubtedly to go join the group of targets.

Logan shook his head. He just hoped that Finn wouldn't miss the mats again. "Pull!" he shouted and shot, hitting his target right on the chest. Satisfied, he finally addressed Rory who stood beside him. "You want to interview Finn, Ace, you should do it quick." He aimed once again. "Pull!"

Another hit.

"Not bad," Rory congratulated and Logan ridiculously felt pride well up inside him.

"Thank you," he said softly.

"So…" she slowly said and fixed her eyes on him. Ah, time for more questions. "Is this your big stunt?"

Logan smiled. "Big stunt?" he asked innocently. She just wouldn't give it up. That was why she was a good reporter. If she learned to bring herself more into it she would be fantastic.

"According to my research you guys always do one big thing at your gatherings," Rory informed him.

Instead of answering, Logan took aim once again. "Pull!"

This time Rory wouldn't let herself be impressed by the hit. "Is this it?" she asked again, waving her hand at the whole set up.

Logan glanced at her. "Does it look like it?" he asked her, turning back to his game.

"I'm guessing no," Rory sighed.

With a nod, Logan took aim again. "You answered your own question. Pull!" As his target hit the mat with color sparkled on his chest he turned to Rory. "You'll know it when you see it," he promised her, deciding to give her at least something. Besides, the jump would soon occur anyway.

She smiled thankfully up at him. "Good."

Before Logan could say more he saw Jamie and Paul carrying Finn on a stretcher by them.

"I missed the mat," Finn groaned.

Logan laughed. Of course. "Again?" he asked, shaking his head. He should have bet on it. Actually, he had bet with Colin that Finn wouldn't make it for the jump. From the way Finn looked he had just won a thousand bucks.

"I'll be fine!" Finn assured. "Don't worry about me! In Omnia!" he exclaimed, slightly moving. A movement he immediately regretted as he groaned and swooned.

Nope, Finn would definitely not be up for the jump. Laughing, Logan turned back to his game. One more shot then he would go search for Colin to collect his money. And they needed to talk about who they will choose to take Finn's place for the jump from the scaffold.

Beside him, Rory looked after Finn.

"Is he going to be fine?" she asked, concerned.

Logan glanced at her and was touched to see genuine concern. Letting his gun sank down he stepped closer to her and laid his hand on her arm. Once more a jolt ran through him and confused, he let her go again. What on earth was that?

"Don't worry. He's fine. Believe me, he's used to this. In a few days he'll be his two hundred per cent again," he comforted her.

Rory smiled and nodded. "Good. He's a little bit crazy, but I like him," she said quietly, once again looking into the direction they had taken Finn away.

"You've just met him," Logan said, inclining his head a bit.

Rory shrugged. "Yeah, but you know how it is sometimes. You just know you've met someone who you'll like."

Right, he knew that. Still, Logan felt himself being slightly annoyed that she immediately liked Finn but she had disliked him from the spot on. Which in turn made him wonder if she had changed her opinion of him or if that was just a given from now on. God, he hoped not. He had thought that she had considerably warmed towards him, but then, that had only been since she had wanted him to get her into the LDB for her stupid article. Would she go back to giving him the cold shoulder and haunting him with her disgusted eyes, once the article was done?

"And sometimes, you can't stand a person at first but with time you get to know that person a little bit better and see that that person isn't as bad as you thought," Rory continued in a quiet tone, meeting and holding Logan's eyes.

Her words made his heart beat faster. "Yeah?"

"Yeah," she smiled. "Like Colin for example. Oh, he's a snob and that he'll probably be always, but you know, we talked a little bit last night and I gotta say, he's kinda nice as well."

"Colin," Logan repeated, gritting his teeth.

Rory nodded and her smile grew into a grin. "Yeah. Who did you think I meant?" she asked, blinking up at him innocently.

Logan turned away from her. "No one," he told her shortly, brought his gun up and aimed. "Pull!"

As his target hit the mats untouched Rory inclined her head. "You missed," she stated.

"I've noticed," Logan told her, his voice growing colder. He knew he was acting like a jerk, but he couldn't stop himself.

"Too bad. Well, I better move on and see what other extraordinary things and crazy games you folks came up with," Rory said and turned away from him.

Logan just nodded but said nothing. He didn't trust himself.

A few feet away Rory stopped though and turned back to look at him. "Oh and Logan?" she asked.

"What?" Logan looked impatiently at her.

Her eyes laughed at him. "You're not so bad yourself you know?" she said with a blinding smile. She took one look at Logan's surprised face and laughed, before turning away and walking towards the next group that was engaged in a game of cricket.

Logan stared after her, dumbfounded, until a big grin spread over his face and warmth flooded his heart.

* * *

"So, how is our patient doing?" Logan asked, stepping into the medical tent with Colin beside him.

"He cracked a rib, but he should be fine in a few days. If he rests for at least 48 hours" John told them with a warning glare at Finn. He knew Finn after all.

John was a former Brigadier who had became a doctor. He and a few other alumni took turns in attending their events for medical emergencies, at least when there were games or other risky adventures on the schedules. The LDB liked the thrill of life, but they were always careful. They had to be.

"So no jump?" Logan asked to be sure.

"No jump," John confirmed.

Grinning, Logan turned to Colin. "Pay up," he told him.

Grumbling, Colin took out his wallet and handed Logan a thousand dollar bill. Content, Logan folded it up and put it into his own wallet.

Colin glared down at Finn. "Thanks, _mate_," he hissed.

"Well mate, I didn't tell you to bet on me," Finn answered him, unfazed.

"He's right. You really should know better by now," Logan agreed. "Finn always misses the mats."

Colin threw him a glare. "I would have but you were faster!"

Logan grinned and shrugged. "No one forced you to accept the bet. Face it Colin: You agreed to the bet and you lost. So get over it."

Colin still glared, but wisely said nothing more. Instead, he turned to the problem at hand. "And who's gonna take Finn's place now?"

"No one can take my place!" Finn protested in a hurt voice.

Logan and Colin ignored him. "There are a few who showed their interest for the jump. Why don't we just write down their names and draw one?" Colin suggested.

"I want to draw!" Finn immediately called claims.

But Logan had another idea. Ever since Rory had left him standing there, having had the last word. Unacceptable. And he knew just the perfect way to get his last word back and be once again the master and commander. Not to mention that it would help her to get the real feel on the LDB. Problem was just that he was pretty certain that it wouldn't be so easy to get Rory to jump down a seven story high scaffold. In fact, despite his undeniable talent to talk people into about anything and everything, he wasn't sure if he could talk Rory into it. Well, in that case they would have at least a good back-up plan.

"Actually, I might know someone who'd be perfect to take Finn's place," Logan slowly told his friends.

"Really? Who?" Colin asked interested.

Logan said nothing and let Colin and Finn continue to stare at him. It didn't take long. Almost simultaneously, Finn started to grin as Colin's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Now you've definitely lost it! No way will she agree to that!" Colin said, shaking his head.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Logan protested. "If I say the right thing to her I think she'll do it."

"No, not Rory," Colin insisted.

Logan frowned. Why was he so adamant about that? "Why not?"

"Look, she really is a nice girl, one you can actually talk to without needing at least some alcohol or painkillers in you. And she's smart, no doubt about that. But she is a rather careful person if you ask me and when she has yet to participate in one of the games I think it's crazy of you to believe that she'll do this jump. That's just not like her!" Colin explained, again shaking his head.

Hmm, Logan got the impression that Colin and Rory had had really an interesting conversation last evening. He had never seen or heard Colin talk that much about a girl, especially if she was the 'foe'.

"I know all that Colin, but I do think that if triggered, she'll dare to take on a few more risks. Let herself have a little more fun," Logan said insistently.

Colin opened his mouth but Finn interrupted them, giving them both a strange look. "Uh, why don't we just save us this unnecessary conversation? If Rory wants to make the jump I agree. You too, right Colin?" he asked, looking at Colin.

"Sure. But she won't want it," Colin answered.

Finn rolled his eyes. "Okay, so we all three agree. Logan asks her. If she says yes Colin will owe us a thousand bucks which we can easily agree on, right mate?" he asked, looking at Logan. "Because I may not have such in deep insight in Reporter Girl but I do know and trust Logan's talent in convincing other people to do things they don't want to do. Our mate here could talk the Pope into marrying one of his cardinals if Logan set his mind to it. If she says no then Logan owes you a thousand bucks. Problem solved. Now go ask that girl and bring me my money later on, because you're giving me a headache."

Logan looked at Finn, then at Colin then back to Finn. He was right. Problem solved. Grinning, he shook his head. "Just one thing, if she says no, which she won't, but if she does, you pay half of the thousand bucks. At least when you want half of my winnings."

Finn shrugged and waved them away.

Together, Logan and Colin left the tent. Outside, Logan turned to Colin. "Well, I better go find Rory."

Colin nodded. "I'll tell the other jumpers to get ready. Good luck."

Logan nodded and watched him leave. "Colin?" he stopped him though. "Why are you so against Rory making the jump? Nothing will happen, you know that," he asked him, truly puzzled by that.

Colin stopped and looked down at his feet. "I'm not against it. I just don't think she'll lean out like that."

Just what had those two talked about last night? First, Rory told him that she had changed her opinion on Colin and now even liked him, and now Colin acted like he knew Rory better than Logan, despite not really knowing her. In fact, it even looked as if Colin truly liked Rory now all of a sudden and Colin hardly ever took a liking to any person. Especially not to someone like Rory who was so different from them all, actually more a 'non-elite' than any of them. What had happened between those two???

"Colin? What did the two of you do last night?" Logan asked, narrowing his eyes.

Finally, Colin raised his head to look back at Logan. "We talked, like you wanted us to," Colin quietly answered.

Logan frowned, staring intently at his friend. "Just talked?" he asked doubtfully.

For a long moment Colin said nothing but just stared back at him until he gave a slow nod. "We just talked Logan," he assured.

But Logan wasn't assured yet. Colin's whole demeanor towards Rory had obviously changed and Logan knew him long enough to know that usually there had to be a lot more involved in order for that to happen than him just talking to someone. "You sure?"

Shaking his head, Colin took one step towards Logan. "Of course I'm sure. I'm not going to hunt in your grounds and you know that. Or you should know that."

That shut Logan up. Of course. Colin would never do that to any of his friends. But why did he refer to Rory like that? It wasn't like that.

"Sorry mate," Logan apologized sincerely. "But you're wrong. Rory's free. I'm not interested in her like that."

Colin held his eyes quietly. "You sure?" he asked softly, turned, and walked away, leaving Logan to stare after him.

Yeah, he was sure. It didn't matter that Logan was attracted to Rory. It didn't matter that she was so beautiful. All that mattered was that she was different. And Logan, though always up to take on a risk, wasn't prepared to launch himself into that risk, the biggest risk of them all. No, he wouldn't.

Besides, after all, Rory may have started to like him, but she never would want him as… like that.

* * *

When he found her half an hour later he was pleased to see her eyeing the scaffold and the four jumpers that were already gathered up there. He could see that she was putting two and two together.

Before Logan went over to her though he rammed his hands into his pockets. He didn't want a repetition of these strange jolts he got whenever he touched her and the best way to avoid touching her was to stash away his hands right from the beginning. Ready now to face her again he went to join her, smiling. "Hope you're thinking up superlatives."

"What are they going to do?" she immediately asked him, obviously having a hard time believing the obvious.

"What do you think they're going to do?" Logan countered, looking at her.

Rory shook her head. "They're not going to jump!" she gasped.

"Jump!" Logan though contradicted her.

Her eyes widened. "That's like seven-stories!! They'll die!!"

Hmm, perhaps Colin had been right after all. It sure looked like it would be harder to convince Rory than he had already anticipated. "We're all going to die one day," he told her, walking forward a bit, closer to the ladder that led up to the platform.

Rory followed him. "But those four are today," she told him, pointing up to the jumpers.

Logan stopped and turned to her. "Six," he corrected her.

Confused she looked up. "I see four."

"I'm heading up," he told her.

Rory rolled her eyes. "Of course you are."

At her comment, Logan had to smile. She was right. He wouldn't let an adventure like this one pass, not if he could help it. But it was time to inform her on her participation now. "And Finn was supposed to do it, but few of us figured he'd make it this far. So… there's an extra space," he informed her, looking meaningful at her.

She didn't get it immediately. "Hmm," she commented looking around before looking back to Logan and finally noticing the challenging look on his face. Her eyes widened and she shook her head. "No!"

Well, nothing Logan hadn't expected. "And we're not going to die," Logan firstly assured her, thinking this was the most important protest on her side. "No one in the Life and Death Brigade has ever died. Old ones have died," he corrected himself.

"I am not going to jump!" Rory told him with vehemence.

At that moment, Seth came up to them. "We're all set," he told Logan.

Logan nodded and put an arm around him, turning them to face Rory fully. "This is Seth, he's the genius behind all this," he introduced Seth.

Seth, apparently having been informed by Colin of Rory's possible participation immediately turned to her. "It's very safe. We did a dozen successful test drops. Every potato came through without a scratch," he assured her.

Logan cringed. Why had he to mention the potatoes?

Sure enough, Rory looked incredulously at them. "Potato?" she asked in a high pitched voice.

"You can't test using people, that'd be dangerous," Logan reasoned as Seth walked away.

Determination entered Rory's eyes. "Look, thanks for the offer, but I'm here as a journalist. An observer. Journalists do not participate."

Logan perked up. Here he had his trap door. "Since when?" he asked with raised eyebrows.

"Since forever," Rory answered.

Clearly, Rory had forgotten who she was talking to. Time to remind her. "George Plimpton never participated," he asked, challenging her to contradict him.

It did throw her off. "What?"

"His best stuff put him in the thick of it. Fighting Sugar Ray Robinson, quarterbacking for the Lions, skating for the Bruins." Logan reminded her.

Rory frowned. "So he participated," she mumbled.

Hmm, perhaps this had been the wrong example. Rory didn't look as if she was much into sports. Yeah, he'd better refer to reporters of the more serious sorts. "Bill Buford lived with soccer hooligans in _Among The Thugs_. Ernie Pyle was so deep in the action in World War II, he was killed by a Japanese sniper, not that you gotta go that far." God, he hoped that she never got this ambitious in being a reporter. He didn't want to see her hurt.

But his arguments seemed to work as Rory unhappily looked at him. "Buford, Pyle, I know."

She still needed more though. Well, Logan had no problem in giving her more. "Richard Hottelet was four months in a Nazi prison working for the U.P.. Hunter Thompson lived with the Hell's Angels. Got in the muck, didn't just orbit around it and it drove his writing. He put you in those biker's parties. He put you in those biker's heads."

Rory threw up her hands. "All right, all right, so those guys participated! I got it! But I…"

"Jumpers to their places please!" Colin called out, looking at Logan with a raised eyebrow.

Damn it, time was running away from him. He looked back to Rory. Time to get more personal. "You're scared."

Immediately, her head shot up at him. "Well yeah!"

"And that stops the greats?" he asked her gently.

She flushed. "It stops this great!" she told him but he could hear in her voice that she was starting to fall.

Finally. Now another jab at her. "Come on, you look like you need a little adventure."

That earned him a self-conscious glare. "What does that mean?" she demanded to know.

Logan shrugged. "You're just a little sheltered."

Her anger flared up. "Why? Because I haven't spent time in a Nazi prison, been stomped on by Hooligans and beat up by Hell's Angels? And Plimpton got banged up pretty good too!"

So she did know Plimpton. That was one thing she could be proud of. Few girls knew Plimpton. Not even Honor knew him and she had grown up with their father after all. But that wasn't important now. Important now was that he sensed that she would only need a little push more. He stepped up to her, totally invading her personal space and he felt his nostrils fill up with that scent that was so uniquely her, though mixed up with the smell of the woods now a little.

"It'll be fun, it'll be a thrill. Something stupid, something bad for you. Just something different," he told her, his voice intimate, insisting. He was awarded with one of her smiles. Encouraged by it, he continued, seeing her resolve crumble with every word he spoke. "Isn't this the point of being young? It's your choice Ace. People can live a hundred years without really living for a moment. You climb up here with me, it's one less minute you haven't lived."

Yes! He had her!

And really, Rory slowly looked deeply into his eyes. "Let's go," she said softly.

For the second time that day his breath was knocked out of him as he gazed into those spiraling blue depths of her. After a moment, he slowly smiled and nodded. "Let's go!"

Together, they went to the ladder. Logan winked at Colin as they passed him, staring surprised at Rory. My, my, this day had turned out to be quite lucrative for him.

"But I am not a fan of ladders," Rory told him, bringing him out of his victorious thoughts.

Logan smiled at her. "They scare the crap out of me too," he joked back and motioned her to go up first.

With a sigh, she started to climb. Not an easy task for her in her ball gown and in her high heels which was the reason why he had wanted her to go first. Should she slip he'd be there to catch her, hopefully without landing them both on the ground with broken necks. She got the heck out of it though after a few feet and it looked like they'd reach the top safely. While she carefully dragged herself up he meanwhile tried to be a gentlemen and not catch a sneak under her dress. Not something easy, considering that he was climbing right under her and did have to look up occasionally. Thankfully though her petticoat was protecting her virtue quite well.

Finally they reached the top and Jamie helped her onto the platform, where Logan joined her a minute later. Rory looked down and paled a bit. "High. We are very high," she said timidly.

Logan threw a glance down at the gathering crowd and moved past her towards their places. "I've been higher."

"I meant distance from the ground," Rory said and followed him.

"That too," Logan said and nodded at Seth who was already waiting for them.

Seth went over to Rory, showing her the belt. "This is totally safe. And it goes with your outfit. Nice," he commented dryly and wrapped the belt around Rory to secure her onto the rope while Logan got secured by Jamie.

Rory, having paled a bit more, pointed down to the crowd. "Why do they look so worried?" she wanted to know, looking back at Logan.

Logan smiled. "We're low on champagne," he calmed her. Seth gave him an umbrella which he opened and held out to Rory. "You can back out, you know? No one's forcing you," Logan told her quietly, his eyes looking seriously at her. He really didn't want to force her to anything.

But Rory shook her head. "I know," she said, a bit calmer now, and grabbed the umbrella.

Proud of her, Logan flashed her a smile and grabbed himself an umbrella as well. Down on the ground, Colin said the opening ritual for their big adventures.

Logan looked at Rory and saw that she was taking deep breaths, but still looked worried and pale.

"You trust me?" he asked her softly. She knew that he wouldn't have brought her up to do the jump with him if he had the slightest doubt that it wasn't safe for her, right?

She stared down and took another deep breath. "You jump I jump Jack," she told him and the movie reference made Logan smile.

Down on the ground, the crowd shouted "In Omnia Paratus!". It was time, Logan looked down and cracked a joke to break the tension he felt Rory was having. "I really should have confirmed that those potatoes were okay."

Alarmed, she looked at him. Using her momentary distraction he grabbed her hand and jumped, pulling her with him. She yelped, but he felt her fingers tightening around his hand while they fell and Logan couldn't say what was more exhilarating: the rush of the fast falling or the jolts that run through his body due to their touching. Whatever it was, his heart was beating faster than it ever had in his life before and he kept a firm hold on her hand, even if the gravity tried to tear them away from each other.

Way too soon he felt the rope slowing them down as they rushed towards the ground and after another second, his feet touched the ground, under the relieved cheers of the crowd. The sudden contact made him stumble and he felt Rory stumble beside him as well, but with their hands still joined firmly they could give each other balance.

Logan stared at Rory with her eyes shining like they've never shown before and her cheeks flushed with the rush of the jump and some strands of her hair hanging loosely into her face and his heart tightened while his breath was knocked out of him for the third time that day. "You did good Ace," he said, his voice thick with emotions he didn't recognize as he had never felt them before.

She looked at him with wonder in her eyes. "Once in a lifetime experience!" she breathed, still riding on the high of adrenaline.

Logan tightened his grip on her hand and looked her deeply into the eyes, forgetting that there were other people around them. "Only if you want it to be," he told her.

Rory held his eyes and put her other hand to cover his hand holding hers and brought their joined hands closer to her heart. Logan wondered what she was thinking while doing that. He couldn't read the expression in her eyes. But he did know that he was going to kiss her, right here, right now. He couldn't not to.

Before he had a chance to draw her close to him for a kiss though a glass of champagne was pressed into his hand and a second later, Rory's hands slowly let his other hand go and he felt reality rush in once again, bringing him down to earth. In the next moment, Colin embraced him before going to Rory and envelope her into his arms as well. Logan's other friends started to pat him on the shoulder and congratulate him, some asking about the jump and how it had felt. He answered them automatically as he tried to keep Rory in his vision who was also bombarded with questions. Now that the adrenaline high started to die down the only thing he was left feeling was utter confusion.

What had just happened?

* * *

The ride back had been uneventful. Logan had volunteered to drive, first because he hadn't been in the mood to drink much after the jump and second and most important as he had a good excuse to avoid Rory's eyes like that. He still felt raw with what had happened there after the jump.

Whatever it was.

Oh, who was he kidding? He didn't feel comfortable with everything that had happened during those two days out in the woods and for once he was very glad that the event was over and they finally could go back to their lives. Far far away from the blue-eyed reporter that haunted his every thought by now.

Right. So he was rather silent during the ride back, only listening to the light banter between his friends, Stephanie and Rory. And of course to the thorough interviews Rory held with them. After her jump she had no longer been a bystander. She had mingled herself with the Brigadiers, had laughed with them, had drunk with them, had talked with them. Never, until the festivities had ended, had Logan seen her standing by herself again but always in the circle of a group. He was glad for her. It was what he had wished for her for the whole time after all. And yet he was surprised to see how well she all of a sudden seemed to fit into that world.

Into his world.

Logan wasn't sure why, but somehow this also troubled him. But then he had made the decision that he no longer would lose any precious time to enjoy his life by thinking about Rory Gilmore. True, he was doing a poor job at that for the moment, but he told himself that this was just because of her close presence that he could feel deep in his bones. As soon as they were back at Yale she would go her way, he would go his way and like they say... out of eyesight, out of mind.

Right.

He glanced via the rearview mirror at Rory, blindfold firmly in place, as she grilled Colin about how the LDB was financed. Colin was reluctant, but she was adamant. Her cheeks were slightly roused and that small smile tugging at her lips told Logan that she already knew a lot more than she probably should know. High time to stop all this and get her far, far away from Finn and Steph, those two chatterboxes. Thankfully, they had just arrived back in town. That meant only a few minutes more and his association with Rory Gilmore would be history.

He pulled into the parking lot nearest to the Branford House and motioned Colin to free Rory from the blindfold. "We're here."

Rory blinked as the light hit her eyes again and looked around.

"Come on, I'll bring you back to your dorm," Logan told her and got out of the car. "Be right back," he told the others.

"See you guys. Oh, and thanks for letting me come with you. I promise this will be the best article you've ever read," Rory said to the others and slipped out as well.

"We'll sure be looking for it," Colin promised, leaning his head out a window. "Just remember Gilmore: No names!"

Laughing, Rory winked at him and turned to Logan. "You don't have to bring me back, really."

Instead of answering, Logan just turned to head towards her dorm. He heard her sigh as she caught up with him. Silently, they walked to her dorm.

In front of her door she turned to him. "Sooo…" she slowly said, looking at him.

Not really knowing what to say either, Logan nodded. "Good luck with your article," he quietly told her eventually, when the silence between them got too much for him to bear.

Rory nodded and looked down. Finally, she sighed and turned to unlock the door. She opened it and turned to Logan again. "So uh, bye," she slowly said.

Once again, Logan nodded. "Bye," he told her softly and turned to go back to the car.

But he got stopped by Rory just before he rounded the corner. "Logan?"

Slowly, Logan stopped and turned to look at her, half of him thrilled to hear what more she had to say to him and half of him dreading it.

"I just…" Rory started and stopped. She took a small step towards him. "Well, I guess I just wanted to thank you. I know that I have you to thank for this incredible chance and I'm very glad you trusted me enough to convince your friends to let me come." Again she stopped and looked down at her feet. Eventually though, she looked up at him again and the warmth in her eyes floored Logan. "And then that jump… it was…" she shook her head and smiled. "Wow. I would never have dared that on my own and it truly would have been a shame to have missed that. So… thank you," she said softly.

For a moment Logan couldn't speak but finally, he shook his head. "You earned it, Ace." He hesitated for a moment. "And never forget one thing: _You _made that jump. _You _took that risk. And it was _you_ who came to me because of that article, leaving me, us, with little choices." He could see that his words surprised her. He nodded. "Think about it, Ace," he told her and then turned to leave quickly. Outside her dorm he stopped though to lean a moment against the cold wall of the building, closing his eyes.

He was determined to push her out of his life. He needed to push her out.

But he wasn't sure if he was able to do that any longer.

* * *

By the time he had gotten back to the car he had himself under control again, having pushed every thought of Rory deep, deep down. He wasn't very surprised to see that Steph had already taken her things and gone back to her own dorm. It wasn't far from here after all. Actually, neither his nor Colin and Finn's dorm were far from here either, but Finn had his own reserved parking space so the boys had waited for him. Once he had parked the car he and Colin helped Finn up to his room. Once their friend was safely settled on the couch, Logan turned to leave for his own dorm. But once again, he got stopped.

"Wait!" Colin called out and hurried into his room. A minute later he returned with a camera in hand. "I forgot to give you this back."

Logan looked at the camera and groaned inwardly. Rory really didn't stop haunting him. He too had forgotten that he had given Colin her camera before the jump. Now he would need to go back to her. Great.

With a sigh, Logan took it. "Did you check the pictures?"

Colin nodded. "Yeah, they're clear to go. A few show a little too much but I trust Rory. She won't use them."

Not to forget that Rory obviously had a new fan.

"There are quite some good ones on it. I especially liked the one of your jump. It's almost as good as the one right after the jump," Finn put in his two cents.

Surprised, Logan looked at his friends. "The jump?"

Colin nodded. "Yeah, I thought she'd like to have the undeniable proof that she indeed jumped off a seven-stories high scaffold. So I took some pictures."

Logan stared at him and then, with a frown, took the camera and scrolled down the pictures. And sure enough, there it was, a clear shot of them jumping off the platform, their hands firmly clasped and Logan could swear that the picture showed her eyes shining. Finn and Colin were right. It was a good picture. Curious, Logan scrolled down to the other picture Finn had mentioned and his heart missed a few beats. Colin had managed to capture them as they had stood there after the jump, gazing into each other eyes, their hands intertwined. It had captured the magic of the moment so much that Logan actually felt for a blink of a second exactly what he had felt right then. As if nothing existed but Rory and him and that was just perfect.

But it wasn't like that. In reality, a lot more existed around them. Gritting his teeth, Logan turned off the camera and stashed it away. "I'll give it to her," he told his friends emotionless.

Colin threw Finn a glance before looking back to Logan. "Well good, then don't forget to give her these as well," he said and held out a bottle of champagne and a gorilla mask.

"What?" Logan asked, not believing his eyes.

"I've talked to the members committee and we all agreed that Rory has proved herself worthy to join the LDB. After all, it is her legacy anyway," Colin explained.

Logan still stared at the mask. "I wasn't asked," he protested tonelessly.

"Well no, but you did bring her in after all. So your acceptance is self-explanatory, right?" Finn said, looking closely at him.

Slowly, Logan looked at him then at Colin. Yeah, he guessed that that actually was so. Damn it. He knew she earned it but if she joined the LDB now he would never have a chance to push her out of his mind. If there was a chance at that at all.

"Of course," he said, forcefully cheerful. "I'll give them to her."

Besides, she probably wouldn't know what it meant, at least not for the time being. Not until the next event for which she'd get an invitation. And until then… perhaps she'd offend everyone with her article and the invitation would be revoked. Of course that wouldn't happen, but a guy could hope after all.

"You do that," Colin nodded.

"Oh and take pictures when you give them to her! I want to see her face! She's pretty when she's surprised. And she's pretty when she's pleased," Finn told him from the couch.

"Finn, just say she's pretty, period, it saves a lot of time," Colin said with an eye roll.

"Okay, she's pretty, period," Finn gave in and switched on the television.

"Okay, I better go. See you tomorrow," Logan hastily made his retreat. He really didn't like when they talked about his Ace like that.

Finn looked at him incredulously. "You're not coming over tonight? We're having a party."

"We just partied for two days," Logan pointed out.

Finn nodded. "And now we celebrate for surviving those two days and are back at the campus, ready to continue to party."

Pure Finn logic. No chance to argue with that. Logan shook his head and smiled. "Sorry, not with me tonight. I need to catch up on some sleep."

"You're getting old, Huntzberger," Finn sighed.

Colin though threw him a doubtful look. "You okay?" he quietly asked.

Logan rolled his eyes. "Of course I'm fine. Just tired. Remember, I just drove for three hours straight."

"Okay, don't get riled up. Just asking," Colin protested, frowning.

God, he needed to get out of here. "Okay, see you," Logan once again said and then made another quick retreat.

* * *

He waited until late in the evening before he once again made his way over to Rory's dorm. For a moment he watched it, noticing the light in her room while the room of her roommate was all dark. When he moved a little he could see her sitting on her computer and he had to smile. Of course she was working, probably on her article.

That girl just didn't know how to switch off and relax. Logan could teach her that. He could teach her a lot of things – if he were ready to pay the price for it. Which he wasn't.

Sighing, he entered the hall of Branford house and went to her door. He carefully put the mask, the camera and the champagne on the ground before he stood up and knocked. Hastily, he slipped away into the shadows from where he could watch her discover the things he just left. He just hoped that she would open the door and not her roommate. It was her though who opened the door a moment later. From his spot he watched as she got annoyed upon seeing no one – until she spotted the things on the floor. Slowly, she bent down and picked up the things. Still standing in the open door he could see as she set down the bottle and the mask to check the pictures on her camera. Suddenly, she stopped and a smile spread over her face and Logan just knew that it was the picture of their jump that had made her smile.

Sadly, at that moment, she closed the door, making it impossible for him to see her reaction to the next picture. The picture of them and that undeniable magic between them that had been caught by Colin. It was a shame as he really would have liked to see her reaction to that picture.

Slowly, Logan slipped out of the shadows and headed back to his room. He shrugged out of his jacket and put it over the chair at his desk where he remained standing, staring at the dark screen in front of him for a long while. Eventually, he slowly reached out and switched it on, calling up his virtual photo book. Two clicks later the picture of him and Rory filled the screen.

He stared at it, took in for the umpteenth time the expression on both their faces. The emotions in both their eyes. The rightness of seeing their joined hands.

His heart clenched and abruptly, Logan switched off the computer and turned his back to it.

No. He couldn't let it happen.

Not that.

* * *

TBC!

_(Author's Note: Uff! I've worked three days on this one. Hope you liked it! I'm awaiting a friend of mine that comes to visit me for a few day. So the next chapter will probably have to wait for a while. Sorry for that. But I promise I'll soon be back to write the behind the scenes on The Party's Over. __Just hope it will be shorter. Until then!)_


	4. Knight In Green Suit

Title: Different

**Chapter 4: Knight in Green Suit**

**(The Party's Over)**

"It's out!"

"Shove it," mumbled Logan, groaning, not bothering to look up and see what Colin was talking about. No matter what it was, it couldn't be important enough to be awakened in the early, early morning.

Colin apparently thought differently though as a moment later, Logan felt his bed covers disappear and disgustingly cold air hit his skin, causing Logan to mutter a curse. Still, he held his eyes firmly closed, burying his head deeper into his pillow. Why the hell was Colin up so early? After all, they had partied together last night, and he had drunk as much as Logan. He should be in bed, as Logan was. On the other hand, Colin hadn't, in contrast to Logan, managed to score with a girl and probably hadn't spent most of the night doing what a young, healthy man can do with a nice looking gal. Right. And now Colin probably paid him back by disturbing him at… well, now.

Something slapped his head. Logan ignored it.

"Logan!" Colin called out, exasperated.

"Just forget it, mate, and spare your breath. You know as well as I that our boy here won't get up unless we give him an unwanted cold shower." Finn's voice chimed in, not sounding his best though. Probably he hated to be up as well.

Wait… Finn was up? After a party and a night with some redhead? Okay… something was wrong here. Or it was a lot later than Logan had thought. Tentatively, he opened his eyes to glance at the alarm clock on his nightstand. Nope, it was as early as he had thought. Way too early. Yet Finn was there with Colin. Growling, he turned and sat up, wincing a little when his head started to make him pay for last night. He glared at his two _former_ friends. "What the fuck is so important to barge in here at this ungodly hour?!"

"I sense a déjà-vu," Finn commented dryly and came to him, shoving a glass into Logan's hand.

"Huh?" Logan grumbled, thankfully accepting the glass and downed the brownish liquid in it. And made a face. The thing tasted awful but he knew from experience that Finn's patented hangover drink would do wonders to his head.

Colin rolled his eyes. "Oh, just that getting up Finn is as bad as getting you up. Here!" He held out something that looked like a newspaper.

Logan stared at it then back at Colin, raising an eyebrow to accompany his glare.

Exasperated, Colin shook the paper. "Rory's article. It's out. It's here."

"That's all?" Logan growled. "You dragged me out of my juicy, nice dream to tell me that the paper came out? That's it. Get out. I'm going back to sleep."

"But the article! The one thing that could destroy us! Get us kicked out of the LDB!" Colin exclaimed, waving with the paper.

Logan sighed. "It won't, it won't and I thought you were past this paranoia."

"Well I am… still. It _is_ something risky, even with Rory as the reporter doing the article," Colin said, shoving the paper under Logan's nose.

Seeing that Logan wouldn't be able to get out of it, he finally took the paper with a sigh and laid it beside himself.

Colin stared at him unbelieving. "Don't you want to read it?"

"Later." Logan yawned.

Finn chuckled. "Gotta say, you've got more restraint than me. Once my eyes opened enough I did read it through. Not very thorough but I did." He looked at Logan with his head tilted. "I would have bet that you especially would rip that paper out of Colin's hand to see what Reporter Girl had to say about the event and our humble Brigade – and about your jump. Care to share why you're not the eager, impatient one, we expected you to be?"

Logan threw a glance at him then at the paper. When he looked back at his friends he shrugged and gave them a sheepish smile. "Well… I might have already read it two nights ago," he confessed finally.

Finn arched an eyebrow. "Did you indeed?" he asked, grinning.

Colin though frowned. "Why? I thought you hated Robert's suggestion."

At the mention of Robert, Logan and Finn both made a face. Robert had wanted them to break into Doyle's office before the edition with the article got printed, to take a look at Rory's article and, if they find something disagreeable, to erase it. Of course, the idiot had never thought about the fact that Rory had probably saved several copies of her work and even if her article were lost or erased from the server, she would have no problem rewriting her article – one that would for sure be a sweet little revenge of her against the LDB if she finds out that they were responsible for the mishap. His Ace was neither stupid nor as innocent as she may look with her big blue eyes and her sometimes shy behavior. He had told Robert that and as he, Finn, Steph, Jamie, Seth and even Colin had been firmly against Robert's demand, Robert had been outvoted. Thank Heaven!

The fact that Logan then had exactly done what Robert had suggested had nothing to do with Robert or the LDB. He had simply previewed her article because he hadn't been able to wait any longer, not after having learned from Doyle that she had handed it in. Never had he any intentions of messing with her article or even destroying it. He knew there would be no reason to and he was right. It was a very good article, not the best he'd ever read, but it was good, well researched and had described the atmosphere of the event very accurately. Perhaps even a little bit romanced, something that unexplainably had made Logan's heart beat faster. There had been a bit too much similes for his taste but other than that, one really couldn't find anything to criticize. Actually, for just being a student writer, the article she had written was fantastic, much better than some stuff he had read from established journalists. He knew his father would like the article once he read it – because of the topic and because of the writer's style. Probably he would ask Logan about her, of course then following with the remark that he should take an example at the Gilmore girl. Oh yeah, he could already hear him.

"Earth to Logan? Hello?"

Colin's voice brought Logan abruptly out of his thoughts. Oh right… Logan shrugged. "I was bored and in desperate need of something to read," he offered with a lopsided smile.

"Right. So you broke into that strange guy's office and read Rory's article." Colin rolled his eyes then narrowed his eyes. "You just read it, right?"

Annoyed, Logan shook his head. "Of course I just read it. What are you thinking? She'd have my head if one comma was changed. Besides, I didn't steal it. The article never left Doyle's office."

"And what would you have done if you indeed found something disturbingly written about us?" Colin asked, interested, letting go of the previous matter.

Logan sighed. "Nothing. Not that there was a chance that I would have found something. So… how did you find it?" he asked in order to divert his friends from wherever this conversation was heading to.

Colin smiled. "It's good. It's really good. And I think you were right. This could work very favorably for the LDB."

"See, all those worries had been for nothing," Logan nodded and got up, stretching himself.

"I wouldn't say for nothing. I was justified to worry. It could have had dire consequences," Colin protested, ever the lawyer that was in his blood.

"If you ask me I found the article fantastic. Best piece I've ever read," Finn threw in his opinion before Colin could go on with his argument.

Logan quickly picked that up. "I have no doubt about that, seeing that the last thing you read on your free time was probably the _Playboy_."

"It was the _Rolling Stones_, please," Finn defended himself, hurt, before he once again turned those clear eyes of his on Logan. "But what I find most interesting is that you went to all that trouble to read that article when you just had to wait two more days and you could read it in the paper. Especially as you never have mentioned Reporter Girl since we brought her back. In fact, you were very fast to change the topic whenever she came up in our conversations. The past few days you acted as if she never existed. And yet you couldn't wait to get your hands on that article."

Damn it, why had Finn to bring that up? "I don't know what you're talking about. Life just went on, that's all," Logan said. Uncomfortably, he turned and went over to his windows to open the blinds and looked out at the campus. It was still early but many eager students already hurried from here to there. As Rory's first class today would start in half an hour she too was probably among those students. Probably, his Ace was now standing at one of the coffee carts to get her coffee. He had found out that she really seemed to like the brown liquid. And apparently, the coffee from the stand across the big library was her favorite.

Inwardly groaning, Logan closed his eyes. Why the hell did he knew all that? Okay, right, he knew why he knew it, but not why he remembered all those little details about her schedule, her life. Or why he couldn't stop thinking of her as his Ace. Truth was that she was still in his head. Pushed away, hidden deep down, but she was still there and not a second passed that Logan wasn't aware of that fact. In the past few days he hadn't avoided Rory – there was no need to as she was burying herself in her studies and the work for the article. But he did avoid talking about her. He wanted to forget her. He didn't need the constant reminders of her. Not to mention that he didn't like the implications his friends made concerning him and her. And he still wondered what Colin and Rory had talked about, seeing as every time Colin spoke about her, he spoke with that barely detectable affection in his voice.

"I think you brought up a few very interesting questions indeed," Colin said smirking. "Of course the answers to all these are most obvious for us bystanders…"

"But as it is undeniable that we are dealing with a blind coward, it is no wonder that our mate here can't see them as clearly as we wise men can see it," Finn finished Colin's sentence.

Logan shook his head and sighed. When would those two finally stop trying to push him towards something he didn't want right now? Doesn't need. "If you have nothing sensible to say why don't you leave? As I'm already up I might as well go to my Politics class."

"I'm shocked! You want to actually go to one of your courses?" Colin asked, raising both his eyebrows. "My, my, if one certain busy student hasn't a good influence on you."

They would never stop. Still, Logan didn't have to like it. "Out!" he demanded and pointed his finger outside.

Laughing, Finn got up from his chair. "Come on Colin. I think we bothered our mate enough for this ungodly hour. Besides, you have Tax Law in forty minutes, haven't you?"

Colin threw a glance at his watch and nodded. "See you tonight at five?" he asked Logan.

They wanted to go to a concert in New York which would start at nine pm. Logan nodded. "See you then."

The two left, finally letting Logan have some peace for this day. Undoubtedly, they would pester him more tonight and tomorrow. Though once they've drunk a lot they would probably let it go. Sighing, Logan glanced at his computer. Thankfully his friends had no idea that he had copied some of the pictures of the event. Every day he would find himself viewing the picture of himself and Rory in his computer, and always he would be staring at it. But perhaps today would be different. His eyes fell on the paper. Or, perhaps not.

Slowly, he went back to his bed and picked the paper up, unrolling it. There it was: her article, right on the front page. She hadn't included any pictures, though she would have had a few that she could have used. Instead she had decided to rather fill up all her space with writing, something Logan respected. It was harder to catch and hold a reader's attention without any interesting pictures. But she had found a good title, one that caught the eye:

_Life and Death Brigade – Not a Myth_.

Then her subtitle: _Tales of a Survivor – Barely Escaping Death_.

Yeah, it caught the eye, intrigued to read the rest of it. Ace had managed to get a certain humor in it; she could hold the reader's interest throughout her article, even through the rather boring part where she explained the Brigade, briefly their history, the organization and the general structure of the LDB. She spoke of the first evening and made it sound a lot more interesting than he remembered it. The fun and joy of living the LDB celebration shone through the entire activities of the second day, the games, the party after the jump. And the jump… nothing could describe the feeling of the rush, the adrenaline, the falling through air, seeing the ground come nearer and nearer in an unimaginable short and yet long moment, but she got damn close.

'_So, my dear readers, if you are ever lucky enough to get an invitation for an event of the Life and Death Brigade – don't hesitate. Believe me, it's worth it.' _

That's how she had ended the article and Logan had to smile at it. He was very glad that she had liked the event. And he couldn't help but wonder if she had yet realized that she now was a member of the LDB as well. He wasn't sure, but he thought not. Otherwise, even with her busy schedule, he was sure she would have come to him to ask some more questions. He surely liked her questions.

And he was yet again thinking about her. God, this needed to stop! Angrily, he pushed Rory out of his mind and put the paper away, her article facing down. Then he grabbed himself some clothes and went for the shower. He had a class in twenty minutes. Perhaps the political chaos in the Middle East would help him forget his Ace. At least for a while.

* * *

"Yes dad, I've heard you. But… Yes, of course I'll come… No, that won't be necessary. I'll drive out with my friends… Yes, yes, I know… Right. Bye," Finn closed his phone and made a face. "Guess what?"

Colin sighed. "You just got the order to go to that Yale alumni party on Friday."

"You bet it was. Accompanied with a few old threats, fatherly advise to how to preoccupy my time and let me tell you, it involved a lot of boring things and very little fun, and of course at least two judgmental comments on how I live my life," Finn told his friends and let out a tormented sigh before he looked at Logan. "What about you? You got your 'invitation' already as well?"

Logan too made a face and nodded. This morning his mother had awakened him with a phone call to tell him that his attendance was requested at that party on Friday. It has never been a pleasant way to wake up with your mother calling you first thing in the morning. Combined with the news, or rather said orders, she had made it a perfect start for a really crappy day. And that just after they had returned from two days living through New York's entertainment hang-outs. Well, at least a few of them.

"I just wonder what's so important at that damn party that our parents are all so insistent on our attendance. Especially as it seems to be kind of a rash thing. I'm sure, otherwise, we would have heard about that alumni party from our parents before," Colin wondered.

Finn shrugged. "Whatever it is, it will be boring. And it will be a waste of time… I could otherwise spend the time drinking a lot of good stuff and of course, with a beautiful redhead."

"At least Richard Gilmore has a well stocked bar. And hey, isn't there a pool house as well?" Colin asked, his face lightening up a notch.

Logan nodded. "I think there is, though it's been a while since I was last at the Gilmore's," he said, trying to remember their house. Of course he saw Richard and Emily occasionally, either in the club or on some other parties. But the last time he had been at their mansion must be at least a couple of years back.

"Right, they usually don't throw parties which our parents deem necessary for us to attend. It is all the more interesting that all of a sudden that is just the case," Colin said, frowning. Then he shook his head. "Pool house or not, it is big enough for us to find a place for a nice little sub-party. If we're lucky, we're not the only interesting persons who got invited."

"Perhaps even some nice chicks we haven't gone through yet," Finn chirped up.

"That I very much doubt." Colin immediately crushed Finn's hopes. "We sure know all the girls in our circle and either they're not worth our time – or we already had our fun with them. And they theirs," he reminded Finn. Then his eyes though started to shine in a wicked glimmer his friends knew to be apprehensive of. "On the other hand, as the Gilmores are hosting the party, it is more than likely that a certain Ms. Gilmore will attend the party as well and she for sure is new in the circle. Hey! Perhaps that's it! They want to introduce Rory to high society," Colin said, glancing at Logan.

Logan ignored the glance and frowned. "She's a bit old to be a debutante, don't you think?"

"Well, I'm not talking about white dresses and curtseys. But they still can throw her a presentation party," Colin protested. "It is high time she gets introduced anyway."

"That's right. At least Reporter Girl makes life a little bit more interesting. Right mate?" Finn smirked at Logan.

Logan didn't answer. He had decided he wouldn't react anymore to such teasing of his friends. Perhaps that would make them stop. Once they saw that he didn't care enough about Rory to even show any interest, Finn and Colin may tire of making any comments sooner or later. Probably much later, like in a few years. Instead, he thought about what Colin had said. It was true that there was a high chance that Rory would be there, it was her grandparent's party after all and a Yale alumni party on top of that. So Rory, a top Yale student, was likely to be on the guest list. But he doubted that this was a debut for her in some sorts. She wasn't the type for it. He couldn't see her attending all the boring champagne and caviar parties he and his friends had attended all their lives, talking gossip and stocks and the latest DAR projects or whatever else the ladies talked about. In fact, he had a hard time picturing her on this party and he actually wasn't a hundred percent sure that she really would be there. After all, she never had attended one of her grandparent's parties before, why start now?

Thinking about it, it was a bit strange. A few months before he never had heard of Rory and now she seemed to show up in all aspects of his life. First, the campus at Yale, then the newspaper, then she blackmailed him for her article, worming herself into Logan's every thought, she had been at the LDB event, now even a member as well and now she might show up at this party. And if Colin really was right then she might come to other parties in future, making her a part of society as well. No… that was ridiculous. She may have the blood and the necessary name and ancestors to be a member of the club but she sure hadn't the attitude. She hated high society. And she was way too direct and blunt on one hand and way too shy and naive on the other to mingle with their folks.

"I think it's just what they say it is… an alumni party, perfect for the patriarchs to get a look at the new elite, for the mothers to watch out for possible grooms and brides and for us young ones to make valuable contacts," Logan said, a bit too forcefully. "Of course they're forgetting that most of us know each other and that our parents and grandparents keep each other informed about the fortune and misfortune of their offspring. Not to mention that they have yet again an opportunity to reminisce of the old, golden days of college."

Finn shrugged. "Could be that or could be this. In the end it doesn't matter, right? We still have to attend and bore us out of our minds. So can we please drop this equally boring discussion and turn to more interesting things like me meeting my dream woman?"

Logan and Colin groaned. How many times had they heard Finn saying that now? "What's her name this time?" Colin sighed.

"Rosemary is the beautiful name of an even more beautiful creature," Finn said dreamingly.

"A redhead?" Logan inquired, just to be sure.

"Of course! Who else can be as beautiful as my Rosemary?" Finn answered, laying a hand on his heart. "She's perfection in person, her green eyes stars on a fairy sky, her red beauty of hair cascading down in rivets of silk, her skin, pale and smooth and so soft you could cry."

Finn continued to describe the wonders of Rosemary but Logan tuned him out. Okay, it apparently had caught him hard. Yet, Logan doubted that she would be any different than Finn's other dream women. Not to mention that he couldn't detect anything different in him. Logan didn't know how it would look like once Finn got serious about a girl as he never had been serious so far but Logan instinctively knew that Finn would be different than now. Perhaps, the difference would be that he would hardly talk about her. Or perhaps, he would be worse. Probably, one day sooner or later, Logan would find out but he was pretty certain that it would yet take quite some time. Especially, as Finn's parents were easier about their son's future than his or Colin's were. They actually seemed to care what Finn wanted, so the chances were high that they would let him marry someone he actually loved. Not that that didn't mean that Finn didn't get the same lectures as Logan and Colin did. But in contrast to him, they knew pretty much that they had little say in their career choices – or in exactly what type of a girl they had to marry in a few years.

And Rory was by far too different from that type, something Logan wasn't sure yet how to feel about it. Be glad about it because he simply couldn't, for the life of him, see himself sharing his life with some bimbo that simply was there to look good at his arm and produce an heir for the family? Or be disappointed, just because she wasn't the type he was supposed to marry one day?

As Logan suddenly realized just where his thoughts had ventured off, he paled. Wait, wait, wait! Who the hell had talked about marriage? Heck, when had it even become a possibility that he and Rory would ever have a relationship at all, especially when it is anything else but friendship?!

God, _what_ was wrong with him lately?!

* * *

"We're late," Colin said, getting out of the limo. They had decided it was best they take advantage of their limo service. To Colin's dismay it had been his turn to provide and pay for the service. But they probably would each drink a lot in order to survive yet another boring high society gathering and they may be young and undeniably sometimes very stupid – but none of them was stupid enough and get behind a wheel, drunk.

"It's seven Colin. The party was supposed to begin at six thirty, meaning that most of the guests arrive around seven. I hardly call that late," Logan said, rolling his eyes.

"It's late," Colin stubbornly insisted and adjusted his tie. "Is my tie sitting right?" he asked his friends.

"Apart from being a further proof of your bad taste in wardrobe choice your tie is fine," Finn reassured Colin, with an eyeroll and another glance at Colin's grey/black dotted tie.

"Says the guy who wears a red tie and with a loose knot at that as well," fired Colin back, looking pointedly at the tie that completed Finn's outfit of a black suit and white shirt.

"Correction mate, I am styled and exotic. You are simply boring though," Finn answered, unfazed.

"Well, if you two have been smart enough, you would have just skipped the tie as I have," Logan said with satisfaction and grinned at his friends.

"Not all of us have the luck to look good and fancy with a turtleneck, my dear lucky friend. And I think we all agree that our mothers would have immediate heart attacks upon spotting us without any tie," Finn said, slapping Logan on his back before he turned to look at the Gilmore mansion. He let out a low whistle. "Not as big as they come but it's nice. It sure looks warmer and a lot more lived in than most houses here in Hartford."

"You've never been here?" Colin asked surprised.

"Nope, never had the honor so far," Finn denied.

"But you do know Emily and Richard?" Logan asked.

Finn nodded. "I've met them at other parties, yeah."

"Well come on, let's get this over with," Colin said with a sigh and together they stepped up to the porch and rang the bell.

The maid opened the door and ushered them deeper into the house, decorated decently with a lot of blue, just as you would have expected for a Yale alumni party. Delicious looking food filled several tables and waiters carried more appetizers and drinks around - and an open bar and welcome cocktail table. What surprised Logan a bit was the large crowd of guests that had already gathered around and that's just in the rooms he could see from his spot.

"See? Told you we're late! My father will have my hide!" Colin hissed, waving around.

"We'll just say the traffic was heavy Colin," Logan calmed him down, looking around for their hosts and his parents. He wanted to get the meeting with them over with, greet and thank Richard and Emily and make his round and then vanish with Colin and Finn and whoever else they deemed interesting enough to their sub-party.

"Uh guys? You notice something weird here?" Finn asked, looking around himself.

"Hmm?" Colin muttered, looking anxiously around himself for his father and his current wife.

"Forget your parents you two and take a look at the guests attending!" Finn impatiently hissed.

Curious, Logan took a closer look at the guests he could see. He couldn't see Finn's problem. Lots of alumni with their spouses and of course their proud offspring, just like he had thought. Most of them he knew, many of the kids attended Yale as well, even some of the Brigadiers were here also. He was glad to see that he had already spotted a handful of guys he knew and were pretty much okay, guaranteeing a promising sub-party. Though he hated these parties, sub-parties sometimes could turn out to be a real blast. All that was missing now were some girls and then…

Oh…

Logan took another look at the guests. Lots of parents. Lots of sons. Not one woman under forty. Oh no…

"Please God no… tell me this isn't what I think it is!" Colin groaned beside him, obviously having noticed the lack of any girls as well.

"If you're thinking that this alumni party in reality is a meat market, a groom viewing for a prospective bride, then I'm pretty sure you nailed it mate," Finn muttered darkly, glaring around.

"I'm going to kill my mother," Logan hissed under his breath. "She knows exactly how I hate these stupid possible future-spouse viewings!"

"The exact reason why they lied to us and tricked us to coming here," Colin sighed.

"No, no… these parties are bad enough! But without any women to distract myself with? Nope! Forget it! I'm out of here as soon as I've had words with my parents," Finn stated in an angry voice.

"I'm with you," agreed Logan, glaring around.

"Not that I'm totally against your plan…" Colin slowly said. "But you forget one thing: There is one girl here. The prodigal bride. And as the Gilmores are the hosts and initiators of this meat market, cleverly masked as an alumni party, I can't help but assume that we know the would-be bride quite well. This does surprise me a little, so much that I can't help wonder how this 'party' will turn out."

Logan paused. Colin was right. It was logical that Rory was the girl who would be viewed and eventually be sold away. And of course, she would be looking around for some fine guy that would just be perfect for her. Actually, Rory was the only one this party could be for. But that didn't make any sense. Rory was hardly one to participate at a society party at all – and now she agreed to such kind of a party? No, that just wasn't his Ace. A lot more would make sense if she had been tricked into this just as he and his friends had been. Oh yeah, that had to be it. It just had to be. Anything else would mean that he had seriously misjudged Rory and he simply couldn't have been this wrong about her.

At that moment, Emily's voice caught his attention. "Everyone, here's Rory!"

Well, that introduction for sure swept away all doubts about this party. Emily would never have presented Rory like that if this was just an alumni party. Slowly, Logan and his friend turned towards the big stairs where Emily and Rory just came down. Emily beaming with pride and Rory…

Wow.

Just like at the event the sight of her knocked out his breath and for a moment, he couldn't form one sensible thought. She was just beautiful. The blue ball gown had suited her better in Logan's opinion, but that elegant cocktail dress sure suited her as well. And, unlike the gown, the dress gave a very nice view of her legs. Actually, his very first glance at them. So far he had only seen them clad in some sort of jeans and that just wasn't the same as seeing them clad in black silk. But as enticing as her legs were, Logan was stunned by the sparkling diamonds decorating her delicate neck, dangling from her earlobes, crowning her hair. If one had asked him he would have said that diamonds weren't Rory's style, wouldn't fit her. And that a tiara would simply be ridiculous, as they just were ridiculous for any girl older than five.

Wrong. She looked stunning with them, even the tiara. They accentuated her beauty and made her appearance more impressive.

Now, if she would smile, she would look perfect. But she didn't smile. That smile she offered when her grandmother presented her wasn't even near a real smile. Instead, she had a clear deer-caught-in-the-headlights look as she followed her grandparents down the stairs, throwing a confused look at their backs. No, she clearly had no idea what exactly this party was.

He watched as her grandparents dragged her to the nearest parents with son, Min and Argus Heads with their son Andrew. Poor Rory. Andrew was such a boring idiot. But she held up herself well, smiled and nodded politely and then she was whisked away to the next 'groom' who was speaking with his parents. Donnan Anderson. His parents, Deanna and Chase weren't so bad but Donnie was, in one word, terrible. Greedy, boring, rough and a bad guy all in all. He doubted that Rory's grandparents really wanted her to be together with guys like Andy and Donnie, but then, one had to invite as many of the possible 'spouses' for such parties. That at least was the only polite way to do it. In the meantime, Rory seemed to realize what was going on as he saw her glancing around and a frown forming on her forefront. And already Rory got herded to the next one and Logan winced in sympathy. If the parents already were named Bunny and Napoleon it wasn't very surprising that they would have the audacity to name their poor kid Kip. Sadly though Kip was everything what the name implied. After all, his main topic was polo, polo, and oh, very surprisingly, polo. If he didn't talk polo, which was a rarity, he would fire off dirty jokes after dirty jokes – bad jokes.

"Poor, poor girl," Finn muttered, wincing in sympathy himself.

"Yep, but think positive, after these three it can only get better. Those three are the worst among us I think," Colin mentioned.

"Nope, I think there are a few more," Logan contradicted. Inwardly though he had to admit that Colin wasn't so wrong… sooner or later they would introduce Rory to a guy more interesting and Logan wasn't sure how he felt about that.

At that moment they saw as Rory grabbed the arms of her grandparents, smiled an excuse to the Barnes and dragged Richard and Emily away, out of sight. Logan could bet that she would ask about the one sided guest list.

"Doesn't look like Reporter Girl got all the details about this party either," Finn commented.

Colin shook his head. "Nope. But then it would have very much surprised me if she had willingly agreed to it. I don't get it anyway. If one girl doesn't need to be showed off, it's Rory. It's ridiculous to force guys on her like that. She could have anyone she wanted."

Logan threw him an annoyed glare. "Perhaps she doesn't look where she should be looking. Or she doesn't want one at the moment so they thought why not give her a few prospects and suggestions. You know as well as I how the old folks can get strange ideas into their heads."

"I see my parents. What now? Do we leave as soon as possible or do we stay and try to save our girl here from a terrible fate of boredom?" Finn asked.

Good question. And as much as Logan longed to leave, he couldn't bring himself to leave Rory without any back-up. She may not know it yet, but friends being there and sharing the torment was a help in surviving these little high society gatherings.

"I'm staying. We can't leave her alone," declared Colin.

Why did that not surprise Logan? Colin could say what he wanted… it looked a lot like Colin wouldn't mind to be the prodigal groom the Gilmores hoped to find tonight.

"I agree and will sacrifice this time for that good deed of mine," Finn nodded. "At least we have one girl to attend our sub-party. Call me when it is time." He wandered off towards his parents.

"Whatever," Logan said, still thinking about what exactly was going on between his best friend and his Ace.

"Something wrong?" Colin asked, arching an eyebrow.

Logan shrugged. "Nothing at all."

"Logan!"

Groaning, Logan turned. "Hi Mom."

Colin turned as well. "Shira, Mitchum," he greeted his parents and then caught sight of the man that appeared behind them. "Dad."

"You're late, Colin," was all Andrew McCrae had to offer his son as a greeting.

"We got stuck in traffic, Sir," Logan calmly explained. He wasn't a big fan of Colin's father. A fantastic lawyer – but personally he sucked big time. Actually, he was a lot like his father, but at least his dad had a sense of humor. Or rather said a lot of heavy sarcasm.

"Then you should have considered that into your schedule," Andrew answered with a frown.

Logan smiled at him. "But, Sir, then we would have risked coming too early and that would really have been impolite."

Andrew's frown deepened and Logan's mother sighed. "Logan…"

"As they still arrived in the acceptable half an hour, I too think there's no reason to argue about that, especially not on a party of our friend, right, Andrew?" Mitchum asked.

After a short moment, Andrew nodded. "I guess so. If you'll excuse me, I have to talk with my son." Thus said, he nodded at Colin and turned to leave. Colin threw a tormented look at Logan and followed his father wordlessly.

"So… I've read the new issue of the Yale Daily News," Mitchum casually mentioned.

'Here it comes,' Logan thought with a sigh.

"There had been quite a few good articles in it. Of course none carried your name in the bylines," Mitchum said and his eyes narrowed slightly.

"I fear there had been nothing left for me to write about," Logan evasively said.

"Of course not. You better see to it that next time there's something left for you," Mitchum casually said, but Logan wasn't fooled. He heard the threat loud and clearly. "Take that article about the LDB for example. I've seldom read something this good from a student – yet I know exactly that you could have made it better. Especially as you're actually a member, unlike that girl."

Okay, though he hated to argue with his father, he couldn't let that stand in the room. "No Dad, I couldn't have. That girl, as you call her, made that article so good because she described the Brigade with the eyes of an outsider. For her, everything was new, unknown. I could never have written it like that."

For a moment, Mitchum looked very closely at Logan. "Wow, I'm impressed, Logan. That's the first sensible thing I've heard you say in I think two years. Perhaps you are right though. Still, to prove your argument you first would have to write something yourself about the LDB. But of course that's not possible anymore, isn't it?"

That was Mitchum. Even when giving something like a compliment there always was some thorn hidden in it. "I guess not," Logan muttered. God, he needed a drink.

"Really, Mitchum, this is hardly the place to discuss this," his mother finally participated in the conversation and then turned to Logan. She sighed. "I won't deny that this outfit suits you, but would it have hurt so much for you to dress in a suit and tie like everyone else?"

"This is a suit," Logan exasperated pointed out. "Just not one as boring as everyone else's."

Still, Shira shook her head. "At least you could have put on a shirt. How am I going to explain to Emily that my son was too informal to put on a shirt and a tie?"

"Tell her that this will make me stand out, something I'm sure she won't mind, especially tonight, right ,Mom? And at least, it's comfortable," Logan answered, feeling that his nerves wouldn't keep up with this much longer.

"Typical Logan. Always thinking about your comfort, your fun. When will you stop always thinking about yourself and start taking on some responsibilities? Think about what you owe your family?" Mitchum sharply chimed in again.

"How about the minute you let me breathe for even a little bit?" Logan threw back in a low voice, feeling his anger flaring up.

"Logan, Mitchum, really! This is no way to behave at a friend's party," Shira tiredly intervened again. "Emily redecorated a bit, have you noticed that? Look at those draperies! They're simply magnificent! How does she find all these fine things? Aren't those draperies simply outstanding, Mitchum?" She continued, pointing at the fabric in question.

Logan rolled his eyes. As did Mitchum. "Of course, Shira. Very nice. Why don't you ask Emily about them? Who knows, perhaps she'll give you the telephone number of her supplier."

"Hardly," sighed Logan's mother. "She's guarding her contacts carefully. Besides, she's too busy showing off her granddaughter right now. I've got to say, with her mother's history, I find it a little risky to force that girl on some guy, don't you think so too?"

Logan gritted his teeth upon hearing that. How dare she make such assumptions of his Ace?! First, Ace was already twenty, not sixteen anymore. And second, Rory wasn't a girl like that. He wasn't even sure if she wasn't still a virgin. God, his mother was so preposterous!

Absentmindedly, Mitchum nodded, not looking at his wife though. "I see Lars. If you two will excuse me, I have some business to discuss with him. Logan, I'm looking forward to reading your article in the next Daily News." He wandered off, leaving a seething Logan and a sighing Shira.

"It's always the same with your father. But you know, you really could do him the favor and write something. It doesn't have to be big. And I know you can do it, you can write such nice things. Remember that paper you wrote in your third grade, about your dog? It was such a sweet little piece," Shira told her son.

Logan shook his head. Then things had been a bit different. For one, his family hadn't yet deflated any desire to write he might have had with their constant pressure on him. And for another, then he had still believed that his writing something would make his father proud and then perhaps make him spend some time with Logan. Maybe even love him. But he had soon found out that these were just some stupid dreams of a very stupid little boy. "I'll check with the editor if he has something for me," he promised with a sigh, knowing that this was the best way to get his mother off his back. And once the next edition got out, again with no article from him in it, he would find some other excuse.

Across the room he saw Finn heading for the bar, Colin joining him. A drink. Oh yeah, what a splendid idea. "I'm going over to my friends," Logan said to his mother, nodding at Finn and Colin.

Shira nodded. "Of course. But make sure you greet Richard and Emily. And you should also go greet that girl. It's her party after all."

Apparently his mother had no idea that he already knew Rory quite well. And Logan had no intention of rectifying her knowledge. In fact, she still owed him for tricking him to come to the party in the first place. "I'll say hello to the Gilmores but don't expect me to talk to that girl. I told you I have no interest in such parties. You promised me you would spare me such things until at least my senior year. Yet, here I am, at a meat market."

"Oh Logan, really, I had no idea. Emily just said it was an alumni party and that they wanted their old Yale friends to get to meet their granddaughter. According to her that girl is the best student at Yale," Shira assured him. "So please, don't embarrass us by being impolite."

"Sure," Logan promised sarcastically and with a head shake, left to go over to his friends. His parents were simply unbelievable. But at least he was over with them for tonight. They've seen him, given him their usual reminders and now they each could go their own way for the rest of the night.

"I bet you need that," said Finn, pushing a glass of pure whiskey into Logan's hand.

Logan took it, downed it and held out his glass for a refill. "Thanks. You're right, I needed that."

Finn nodded and refilled the glass, this time though making it lighter.

"The same?" Colin asked darkly.

"The same as always," confirmed Logan.

"Like a broken record," Finn too sighed. "But it's done and now we can throw ourselves into the fun." He stopped to look around and sighed. "Or as much fun as one can have here."

"Cheer up, Finn. It could get worse. As I came over here I passed Rory. She was in the middle of a group, full with motorists, headed by Byron Campbell. Poor girl looked like she would fall asleep any second now," Colin said.

Finn and Logan made a face. The motorists had nothing better to talk about than their newest car and then get into heated discussion, which motor was better. Byron being the worst of them all.

"And you didn't save her? What a knight are you, to leave our girl in their unappreciative hands?" Finn incredulously asked.

"I couldn't at that moment as my father was still lecturing me before he went off to go harass Nenita," Colin defended himself.

"Nenita?" Finn asked with a frown.

"My newest stepmother. You were at the wedding," sighed Colin. "Anyway. And when I looked back at the group she just excused herself and vanished to somewhere in the back of the house. I think she desperately needed a break."

"No kidding," Finn said and sighed again. "Well, I guess that means the sub-party has to wait a little bit longer. We can't start without the guest of honor, can we?"

Logan nodded. "It would be too early anyway. Besides, I'm hungry. And one can say much about this party, but the food is excellent."

"Always with Emily," Colin nodded. "But why don't we take a look around the house? It's been a while since I was here, I'm sure some things are new. Besides, remember the LDB challenge."

"I guess that will do until we can vanish for our sub-party. Like we have a chance to find the best place for it anyway," Finn agreed.

"Let's go get some food and then off to our expedition!" Logan summarized, his mood slightly cheering up again.

* * *

"The library!" Colin exclaimed and turned to his friends. "Ha! I was right! Pay up!"

Groaning, Finn and Logan handed him their fifty bucks. They had made a little game out of this by guessing before each door what could be behind it. So far Logan had been right six times, Colin five times and Finn never.

"That's it, I'm broke. That's the last room," Finn stated, looking sadly into his empty wallet.

"Oh don't worry, with you, we're also accepting checks," Logan reassured his friend and then wandered off to take a look at the books.

"How generous of you," Finn sarcastically said and he too took a look around.

"Finn's right though, I think we should go back after this one," Colin said. "We still have to gather the guys and Rory together after all."

Logan nodded, reaching for a first edition of a P.D. James. _A Certain Justice_. It was one of his favorite books and he was a bit surprised to see it here. Richard sure had a good taste in reading, but this was the first crime book he had seen so far. At least of this type. Curious, he opened it and a little paper fell into his hands. He unfolded it.

_Grandpa,_

_I know, not exactly your style, but give it a try._

_I dare say you'll like it._

_Happy Birthday!_

_Rory_

Smiling, Logan folded it again and laid it back into the book. That explained this stranger here among these classic books. The note had been short, but warm, affectionate. Looked like Rory really loved her Grandpa. He wondered how that felt. To describe the relationship between him and his only living grandfather as cold would have been an understatement. But then, Logan liked Richard. He was a decent man. Unlike his grandfather.

Finn whistled. "Come and look at this, guys," he said from a cozy little reading corner near the fireplace.

Logan put the book back into its place and went over to him, curious to see what had captured his interest. Colin too came over.

Finn was standing in front of a painting, grinning. "This girl here familiar?" he asked, pointing at the painting.

Colin joined him and smiled. "I think she is," he smirked, looking closely at the painting.

Logan rounded the painting to take a look at it as well. It was a younger version of Rory, but he had already figured out as much. Plus, the rich usually saw it fit to have an oil painting of their kids at one time or another. In some families, it has become tradition to commission a painting of the family every time there is a family addition. Thankfully, there existed only one painting of him and Honor. That was enough. Not that he was opposed to the idea, but he remembered the painting sessions to be very boring and painful. This painting though looked as if Rory had actually been comfortable. Usually, the poor models had to sit or stand in some unusual position, making the sessions a real torture. But this showed Rory as she read a book at the patio, buried deep into the world of the book.

"It's quite good. Usually, those things don't show the real person," Finn commented, looking critically at the painting. "Technique could be a bit better, but the choice of colors is good and they complement well with each other, making it an incredible warm work. And it really captured Rory's true self. That's really seldom with these. Hmm, I wonder who the painter was." He bowed to look at the name. "Hopes. Never heard of him." He looked for a moment longer at the oil painting. "But I think it's worth to look him up," Finn quietly said, more to himself.

Logan wasn't studying art like Finn did, but he agreed that it was good. Just not perfect. Something was disturbing him with this scene, but he couldn't put the finger on it. "Rory doesn't look as comfortable as she should while reading," he said slowly, not taking his eyes off the painting. "The scenery is wrong," he continued, slowly getting to the bottom of the problem. He frowned. "It should have shown her right here in the library, the fire burning beside her, walls of books surrounding her. She's swallowed in one of these big leather chairs, her feet tugged under her, her head bowed over the book so that her hair falls into her face at least on one side and her eyes shine with joy and happiness, simply because she's here, reading a good book. Yeah, that would have been perfect."

He could see the scene as if he witnessed it just right now and smiled. Yeah, that was his Ace. If he ever ordered a painting of her, this was how he wanted it to look like.

Silence. When he became aware of it a moment later Logan looked up to see his friends staring at him. "What?" he asked, uncomfortably, suddenly aware that he had said all that aloud. Or at least, most of it. Truth was, for a moment there, he had forgotten that he wasn't alone.

Finn and Colin exchanged a look and Logan braced himself for yet another wisecrack. It was unavoidable. To his surprise though, Finn just squeezed his shoulder briefly. "You're right. That would have been even more suitable," he said softly. "Come on now, we have a sub-party to organize."

Colin too just nodded, not making any stupid comment. "Yeah, come on buddy. Let's go save the fair maiden and then we show her how a real society party is done."

The two headed towards the door while Logan stood rooted on his spot, staring after them. This had been… strange. Even he had to admit that he had just said a few very corny things, and all that over a stupid painting. He looked at the offending object and shook his head, confused. Why had that painting affected him so much anyway? He wasn't really into painting, really not. And even more curious, why hadn't Finn and Colin made one of their usual unwanted comments about him and Rory after everything he had said? He didn't know it but something told him that he wouldn't like their reasons. That he would have preferred them doing their routine than be all of a sudden so… like they have been.

* * *

"So… what thing first?" Colin asked, once they were back in the crowded halls of the Gilmore mansion.

Logan and Finn shrugged.

Rolling his eyes, Colin shook his head exasperated. "Okay, looks like I have to do all the work… again. I'd say that you Finn make sure that we have enough drinks over in the pool house. A little bit of food couldn't hurt either. It really is good. Uh, we're doing it in the pool house, right?" His friends nodded. "Right. Logan, you go look for Rory. And I'll see which decent guys I can round up. Okay?"

Logan nodded, his thoughts still a little preoccupied with trying to figure out what had happened in the library.

"Finn?" Colin asked as Finn didn't give an answer.

"Can I trust my eyes? Is that really Jordan Chase talking to our girl there?" Finn asked, staring outside the patio doors.

That made Logan look out, frowning. Jordan Chase? Where had he heard that name again? Curious, he followed Finn's gaze. There was Rory, standing by a cocktail table, a dark haired guy talking to her. To Logan's dismay, she was apparently not too mindful that this guy was talking to her.

"Chase? Slickslug? The guy that broke your sister's best friend's heart – luckily for her as it turned out? The guy whose balls Lope then later nailed?" Colin asked with a frown.

"The one and only. What the hell is that bastard doing here?" Finn asked, rage burning in his eyes.

Logan couldn't blame him. After Lope, Finn's sister, had taken revenge for her best friend when the guy had the audacity to turn up on one of their parties with another girl, he had tried to sue her for it, knowing exactly how much money he could get from a family like the Teverboughs. Enter Colin's father. He had made a legal maneuver with Chase and the guy never saw a penny. Of course though, he was one big red rag for Finn. No wonder. If some bastard would have done the same thing to Honor, Logan wouldn't react any different. But, from what Finn had told them he already had a little private talk with that guy. Still, just to be on the safe side, Logan moved closer to Finn, putting a hand on Finn's arm… to calm him down, and, to restrain him.

Colin looked out at Rory and Chase again, worried. "I've heard that the Chases have lost another fortune. Right now, they're pretty broke. A fortune like Rory is likely to inherit one day would just suit them fine I think. Plus, a job in Richard's firm for Jordan wouldn't be bad either."

Over his dead body! Logan's eyes snapped over to Rory. Jordan was still giving her bullshit, but now, to his relief, she definitely looked annoyed at Jordan. Actually, she looked like she could really need a little help right now to get rid of this bastard.

He moved without thinking. One second he was standing in the house, keeping a hold on Finn, the next he was strolling out to the patio, heading straight towards his Ace, acting completely on instinct.

"Rory!" he called out and hurried over to her. "There you are, I've been looking everywhere for you!" he exclaimed, amused by the startled look that Rory gave him. She sure hadn't expected him here, let alone him hurrying to her rescue. He slipped an arm around her and smiled at her, with puppy eyes, begging for forgiveness. Her eyes widened further in surprise. He just hoped she wouldn't ruin the charade. "I'm late, I'm sorry, don't be mad," he pleaded and then turned to look at Chase, smiling a cold, clear warning at him. "Logan Huntzberger," he introduced himself, holding out his hand.

"Uh, Jordan Chase," Jordan answered, obviously irritated by Logan's intrusion, and shook his hand.

Logan kept the hand in his and squeezed firmly. "Good to meet you. Thanks for keeping my girl busy." He let go of the hand as he slightly emphasized 'my girl'. Beside him he felt Rory realizing what was going on. Trusting that she would let him play this he continued, never leaving Chase out of his eyesight. "If you hadn't she would've known exactly how late I am and then she might have left and that would have been very, very bad," he said, his smile turning icier.

Jordan stared confused at them and a big frown on his forefront. "Ha, excuse me – you're with her?" he wanted to know, looking dumbfounded and still a lot irritated.

As his smile grew, Logan narrowed his eyes. "Going on for one year and a half," he answered happily, drawing Rory closer to his body. He felt her laying her hand over his hand on her shoulder and out of the corner of his eyes he saw her smiling at Chase as well.

Good, she played along. Apparently, she wanted Chase to get the message to get away and stay away from Rory as much as he wanted it and Logan didn't even pretend that this didn't please him – or the fact that Rory was here in his arm, leaning against his body.

And Chase got the message. "Great… what the hell am I doing here?" he asked himself, shaking his head lightly and walked away.

Logan looked after him until he was sure that he was gone for good before he reluctantly let go of Rory and stepped away to face her, pushing his hands into his pocket. As she had laid her hand on his and their skin had touched, he once again had felt that strange jolt running through him, just like it had whenever he had touched her back at the LDB event. There was no way in hell that he would have let go of her hand this time though and he noticed that after a moment, the electricity subdued to a warm tingling that actually felt quite warm and good.

"Oh _thank_ you," Rory thanked him sincerely, giving him one of her rare bright smiles.

"You looked a bit cornered," he answered, explaining his actions. He wouldn't put it past her to demand answers for his actions now that Chase was gone.

But Rory just nodded minutely. "I was," she admitted.

"Well, glad to be of service," he said, suddenly feeling a bit embarrassed. What was that girl doing to him, damn it? Hastily, he changed the topic. "Man, I hate these parties," he told her with a smile.

Rory nodded and took a short look around. "Not really my bag either," she agreed, scrunching up her nose, looking so damn cute whenever she made that.

"But at least the bar's stocked and I must say your grandmother has excellent food," Logan pointed out with a smile. He wondered how she would react to the news that he knew her grandparents.

Sure enough, Rory looked puzzled at him, looking even cuter. "Wait… my grandmother?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Logan?"

Damn, why had Richard to pick that moment to find Logan among his guests? He would have liked to end that conversation. Sighing inwardly, Logan straightened and turned to face Rory's grandfather, once again standing at Rory's side, this time though a few feet away - sadly.

"How are you son?" Richard asked, holding out his hand.

Logan shook it. "I'm very well, Sir, and yourself?" They let go of their hands.

"Oh, I'm fit as a fiddle!" Richard answered, smiling. "It's good to see you. Are your parents here?"

The question surprised Logan. Shouldn't he know that they were here? The Gilmores had invited them after all, hadn't they? But he nodded. "Wandering around here somewhere. Mom is obsessed with Emily's new draperies."

"Ah yes, Emily has exquisite taste in fabrics. All right, Rory," Richard said, smiling at his granddaughter, "since I see that you are in capable hands I will make another round and end up at the bar," he finished with a wink at Logan. It wasn't really hard to conclude that he was more than pleased by finding Rory in Logan's company. Not too surprisingly. Richard knew and liked him and also knew that Logan came from a good family and had enough money of his own so that he for sure wasn't some gold digger.

"It's been good to see you, Richard," Logan said honestly. After all, he really liked Richard, even if he had just interrupted something here. On the other hand, from what he could see out of the corner of his eyes Richard may just have made his conversation further with Rory all the more interesting.

"Good to see you, Logan," Richard said, and with a last look at Rory, moved over to other guests.

Amused, Logan turned back to Rory. During his brief exchange with Richard he had had a hard time not to laugh at Rory's wonderfully surprised face which was now showing some annoyance. He bet she had just loved to hear her dear grandfather tell her she was in good hands with Logan. But honestly, she was. Way better than with idiots like Kip, Andy, Donnie, Byron and especially than that bastard Chase.

"You know my grandparents?" Rory asked with narrowed eyes.

Logan smiled sweetly at her. "My folks are good friends with Richard and Emily," he explained. Across the patio, at the pool house, he could see Colin giving him a nod. "Okay, so lesson one in coping with painfully boring parties… form a sub-party," he instructed Rory who once again looked startled at him at the abrupt change of topic. Grinning at that he turned to look around for a bottle of champagne. Ah there!

"Where are you going?" Rory asked, coming after him.

Logan ignored her question and instead called for Finn who he just knew was still hovering close. "Finn!"

"Finn's here?" Rory asked, her surprise growing. And didn't Logan just love to give her surprise after surprise. But really, it was her fault. If she wouldn't look so cute and act so funny whenever she was surprised, he wouldn't feel this overwhelming need to keep doing just that: surprise her.

Finn went out to the patio and Logan saw him throwing a look into the direction of Chase. Thankfully though he came over to them and didn't go after the bastard. "You rang?" he asked.

"Time for a change of venue," Logan told him and, grabbing the bottle, left the two standing, certain that they would follow.

"Oh, fantastic," Finn said with relief. Then Logan heard him asking Rory a question Finn tended to unnerve every woman with. "Do I know you?"

"Uh, yeah?" Rory answered, thrown back.

Poor Rory. Finn could play that game to the perfection. Most gals stopped reacting to Finn's repeated question and went on to simply ignore him. Some got angry and wouldn't talk with him anymore. Of course, then Finn wouldn't stop talking to them. Others patiently explained time and time again to him when and where they've met. Logan knew that Finn did that as some sort of a test, but so far only Finn knew how to evaluate the results and come to a decision. In the meanwhile, he and Colin had fun watching the show. But Logan couldn't deny that he was curious how Rory would deal with it in time.

Time.

Logan sighed. This party had made him even more uneasy about this thing… this thing that was going on between him and Rory. Companionship, friendship… something more perhaps. Nonetheless it started to make bigger and bigger circles. Like her grandparents now hoping for something to come out of this. Logan wasn't a fool. He knew well enough what the whole scene before had been about and just what ideas now were in Richard's head. That was the problem in this circle: go out with one girl of society and the mothers were already planning the wedding while the fathers battled about the prenuptials. It was one of the reasons why he stayed way away from any girl of blue blood. Oh, his girls could be rich - actually, mostly they were less embarrassing then - but not of the right blood.

But Rory wasn't one of his girls. And he wouldn't want to make her one of his girls. That just wasn't her.

Besides, Rory wasn't society. Not really. Yet, she was here, being showed off as an heir by her grandparents who have been long time friends of his parents. She was wearing half a fortune of diamonds, probably thinking that they were expensive but having no idea that she, in fact, was wearing around millions and millions. And he had seen her mingle with the people like a pro, smiling here and there, always polite, always cheerful. He hadn't thought she had that in her. Not after the way she had ripped him a new one for being an elitist snob after their encounter with Marty.

Right then and there, when she had dressed him down for his behavior, he had known that she wouldn't fit into this world.

He looked back at her, seeing that she and Finn had been stopped by some people he didn't know and once again he could see her smile and nod, giving an answer that made the person laugh. Even Finn.

Looked like he had been wrong. She fit just nicely into this world.

And that made it just more impossible.

* * *

Half an hour later they had finally managed to gather all the people together and vanish off to the pool house and get the party rocking – literally. Finn had brought along some music that was playing in the background. To their pleasure there was a dart board and a billiard table in the pool house, so fun was guaranteed, even without other girls aside from Rory around. Almost every one of them loved to play… and loved to bet among themselves.

The only one that sucked at playing among them was Rory. After refusing to play, declaring that she was miserable at the games, the boys had pressured her to prove it by playing at least one game. The pool table had barely survived it. A little pharaoh statue ten feet away from the dart board had only survived her darts by being made of bronze. After that everyone had agreed that it was safer for this world that Rory immediately stopped playing and she was ordered to go sit on the couch, where she still was, almost an hour later, talking with one or another of the guys and they all seemed to enjoy it.

So far, the sub-party was definitely a blast and the people were amusing themselves. Good food, good music, good games, good booze, nice people – what more would anyone want?

Logan had just finished a dart game with a couple of friends he had met in Andover and hadn't seen in a while. They had had a good talk, had brought each other up to date and Logan had lost almost all his winnings from before to Landon. Not wanting to end with an empty wallet as Finn had, he decided that it was time to stop. And he wanted to talk a little more with Rory. After all, he still had to tell her how he liked her article. So he went over to the bar to get some champagne for them as he had seen that her glass was empty. Grabbing the bottle, he went over to the couch where Rory was currently talking with Finn. She may suck in games but it had turned out that she was an absolute pro regarding movies and music. Actually, she was so good that she so far had no problem keeping up with Finn for almost twenty minutes now as they fired off questions at each other. So far, no one had managed to beat Finn in that game but from the defeated expression on his face and the victorious expression on hers, Finn had just found his master.

Oh, he and Colin would never let him live it down that he finally had been beaten, and by a girl that he had labeled off once as bookish. Hehe.

Just as Logan joined them, Colin came over to them as well. "Gilmore, your grandfather has appalling taste in scotch!" he stated, walking around the couch and waving with the offending bottle.

Rory looked behind at him. "I think you should go inside and tell him!" she dared him with a smile.

At that Colin was quick to let it drop. "If he hasn't learned by now I certainly can't teach him," he rather lamely tried to point out and stopped at Logan's side who was giving himself a refill.

"Colin, make sure you refill that bottle with something. We don't want Ace over here to get busted," Logan reminded Colin, remembering only too well the last sub-party over at Seth's.

"I know, I know," sighed Colin and went off.

Hoping that Colin would still remember it in a few hours Logan made a mental note to better check it himself. He turned to Rory. "Refill?" he asked, holding out the champagne.

She hesitated a moment, but then held out her glass. "Sure, why not?"

"Because drinking is bad," Finn mentioned. "It's very, very bad and we're bad for doing it." He looked at Rory. "Spank me," he ordered her.

Logan raised an eyebrow. Finn saying that drinking was bad? Boy, she must have really kicked his ass at the twenty questions game.

"I think the hangover tomorrow will be punishment enough," Rory answered him, smiling.

Finn looked darkly at Logan. "She hasn't had enough champagne, Logan," he declared and jumped off to venture elsewhere. Laughing, Rory looked after him before returning his attention back to Logan.

Logan couldn't help but think that Rory still had a lot to learn if she thought that Finn would feel anything tomorrow in the state he currently was in. It would need a lot, lot more of harder stuff for that to happen. And Finn was right. She hadn't drunk much and Logan, remembering well how little she had drunk at the LDB event, supposed that she probably wasn't much of a drinker. What he didn't know yet was if that was because she didn't dare to drink more or because she wanted it that way. Well, the night was still young. Perhaps he would find out later. But she was way too sober for that right now. But perfect to discuss her article with. He sat down beside her.

"Hey listen, I forgot to tell you, I read the article," he said casually, ignoring the fact that he hadn't seen her since he had brought her to her dorm after the LDB event. At least not face to face and actually talking to her.

He had expected a reaction, but not exactly the way her eyes lit up and she eagerly turned to face him straight. "You did?" she asked, pleasantly surprised.

Logan nodded. "Yep, not bad," he told her seriously.

"Thank you," Rory said, a bit shy, but proud.

Her face beamed. He wondered why she reacted so much to his compliment. Many people must have congratulated her on her good work by now, haven't they? Even more surprised though was he by the amount of value she seemed to give his review. He would have thought that his opinion wasn't of much interest to her. Well, if she wanted it that much he had no problem giving her more.

"Caught the spirit of the thing, I'll give you that," he elaborated.

A frown appeared between her eyes. "But?" she wanted to know.

Hmm, could it be that she had a problem with critique? Well, if she wanted to be a reporter, she would have to get used to it. "No, no buts," Logan told her truthfully. "You've got a good style. There were a few too many similes in it for my taste," her frown deepened and he had to suppress a smile. "But it definitely had a Joseph Mitchell thing going for it, I like that."

He watched as she digested his words while tugging at her lips and was pleased to see that she accepted his critique willingly. The frown was gone and the contentment had returned. Then she looked back into his eyes. "I'm surprised you even bothered to read it," she said and it disturbed Logan a bit that she seemed to have said that not because she was fishing for more compliments but because she honestly had believed that.

Just what an opinion had that girl of him exactly? How could she think that he would not read the article after he had brought her into the LDB for it in the first place… because she had blackmailed him?!

"Are you? Hmmm…" he said and promised himself that he would try to improve her opinion of him, whatever it was. He looked a moment longer into her eyes and suddenly, the need to finally taste those lips grew overwhelming. Damn it. Quickly, he took a deep breath and jumped up to get more space between them. He wasn't so sure though if right now this was because he was reluctant to start anything with her at all – or because he knew exactly that once they finally kissed he would never be able to stop anymore. Considering that they were in a room full of people, not something he wanted.

And not just people, he reminded himself. Each and every one of them was, after all, only here because he may be just the right man for her. Right.

"So…" Logan said, pushing his hands into his pockets, and stared down at Rory. "Who's it gonna be?" he asked, interested in hearing her opinion of her choice in this meat market of a party.

Rory frowned, not following him. "What?"

"Well…" Logan looked around the room, noticing that some of the guys had heard the topic he had brought up and now listened with interest themselves. "This shindig's an obvious meat market. I've got the feeling that your grandparents are expecting you to choose someone tonight. So…?"

Rory blushed furiously, making Logan smile. The next moment, Finn rushed back to them and dropped down onto one knee in front of the couch, holding out a vase full of flowers and a bottle of champagne to her. "Me! Pick me!" he exclaimed, looking pleadingly at her.

Damn he had been fast, Logan thought, more amused than annoyed. Of course it helped a lot to see just how many shades redder Rory had just turned. Cute.

Colin came hurrying over as well. "No! Pick me!" he exclaimed, looking daringly at Rory.

Like on command, all of the guys came rushing over and surrounded the couch, all pleading to Rory to take him instead.

"But I'm exotic!" Finn argued, looking into the round.

"So's the Asian Bird flu," Colin answered deadpanned.

Logan shook his head. "Wow," he sighed. "A room full of guys and still extremely slim pickings." He made a sad face.

But Rory, as red as she probably could get, played along. A bit embarrassedly, but that didn't matter. Logan knew that everyone in this room would like her for it. "Well, I don't know. It's a tough choice," she slowly said, looking shyly around. "Maybe I should let my boyfriend help me choose."

_Boyfriend_? What boyfriend?! She never had mentioned a boyfriend before! Or was this just part of the game? No! She couldn't have a boyfriend! He caught a glance between Colin and Finn and could see that he wasn't the only one surprised by this. "You have a boyfriend?" Logan asked, a lot sharper than he had intended to, his eyes narrowed. But he couldn't help it. _Boyfriend_?

To his dismay, Rory nodded. She had a boyfriend. She was a girlfriend. She let some guy touch her, kiss her, have sex with her…

"I'm crushed," Finn said, standing up. He still played along, but Logan could see that he was as startled as him.

"Ain't it always the way," Colin sighed and looked over at Finn, then at Logan.

Avoiding their eyes, Logan suddenly felt the urgent need to sit down and sat back down beside Rory. A boyfriend. She had a boyfriend. How could this have happened?! Girlfriends gave different vibes than Rory had. She never made one comment about a boyfriend, not that they had ever talked about that. Nor had she shown even the slightest sign that she was in a relationship. He had never seen her with a guy. Hell, she studied way too much to have time for one or at least that was what Logan had thought. And back on the ride to the event, she had said that it would be no problem to stay overnight! What kind of a boyfriend was that… that he let her vanish for two days without being able to contact her? She had vanished for no more than two hours on that first night and he had been worried to death and that bastard had not even made any signs that he missed her or was worried about her for two days? Or let her come here, leaving her once again alone to go through this without back-up?

And damn it all to hell, why the fuck did that news throw him off that much?!

He forced himself to take a few calming breaths. But wait a minute! If she already had a boyfriend, then why this godforsaken party? "Do Richard and Emily know about this?" he wanted to know.

Rory sighed. "Yeah they do."

Logan frowned, realizing what exactly was going on here. Apparently they didn't approve much of her choice. Well, though hating to be on the enemy's side, he could only agree with them, even though he had no idea who or what that guy was. But any guy who cared so little about her simply wasn't worthy of her. Not that he would ever dream of saying so to Rory. "They're just trying to make sure you got back-up?" he instead inquired further. Hmm, thinking about it, that perhaps wasn't that bad a plan. After all, Rory wasn't stupid. Sooner or later she had to see what a looser that guy was. And, if she wanted to, there was no doubt that Rory would find in this room more than one guy who was willing to take over the vacant spot.

Of course not him though.

"No," Rory embarrassedly tried to defend her grandparents. "They're just…" Suddenly she stopped and paled, jerking up. "Oh, no! What time is it?" she asked in a panic.

Frowning, Logan fumbled for his watch, but his mind wasn't really in it.

"It's crying time," Finn commented dramatically and Logan could swear that his friend had just glanced at him while saying that.

In the meantime, Colin had been the fastest at looking at the time. "Eight forty-five," he provided.

Rory's eyes widened and she jumped up, grabbing her shoes. "Dean is meeting me at eight-thirty!" she exclaimed and rushed over to a seat to strap on her shoes.

Logan looked up and moved over to her. "Where?" he asked, already trying to figure out if he should help her get to that idiot as fast as possibly or just act as if he was sorry that she was late.

"Here! Out front!" Rory answered in a hurry, fumbling with her shoes.

Here? The boyfriend was here? She was talking about the stupid fool, wasn't she? "Dean…? Is this the boyfriend?" he asked, looking down at her bowed head.

Exasperated, Rory answered with an eyeroll. "Yes, the boyfriend."

What kind of a name was Dean? It sounded just like the loser Logan thought he was. Well, as he was here nothing could stop Logan to take a look at that guy. He looked at Colin beside him who himself looked critically at Rory. "Well, we got to see this guy," Logan declared, smirking. Oh yeah, they definitely had to see that guy.

"What?" Rory unbelievingly asked, looking up at them with wide eyes.

Logan smiled reassuringly at her. "See who the man is who's won your heart. Got to make sure he's good enough," he told her. Beside him, Colin nodded, matching his smile. Oh yeah, they would see that guy and make sure that he knew that there was no way that he was good enough for her. And that he knew exactly just who would wait patiently until he screwed up enough for Rory to come to her senses. He nodded. "Coming boys!" he called out to the guys, meeting some of their eyes. It was obvious that he wasn't the only one having his doubts about this _Dean_. And the others would just love to have a good show.

"But… guys!" Rory looked at them speechless and not just a bit alarmed. She should be.

Finn came strolling over from where he had put the vase and champagne back. He met Logan's eyes and nodded briefly and smiled down at Rory as he passed her, before he followed the other guys out. Logan knew that smile. And he pitied Dean not in the slightest. Quite to the contrary actually.

"Coming?" Logan asked smiling and then left to go after the guys himself, leaving Rory to hurry after them.

* * *

Rory was pleading at them all the way out to go back to the sub-party. Once she could see that that wasn't going to happen she demanded that they should be nice to her boyfriend. Logan assured her that they would be. But there was nice and there was _nice_! All Rory would see would be a bunch of guys who had a little bit too much to drink and were having fun. The boyfriend though would see something else altogether. A jury that would most likely judge him unworthy. A menace. A warning.

But that was guy code and no girl could understand that. Thank God.

Once they got to the door Rory pushed herself to the front of the group and turned to face them.

"Remember: Be nice!" she ordered, giving Logan a meaningful look. Logan just smiled innocently at her.

Shaking her head she turned and opened the door just enough to slip out of it. Or tried to. The boys started to whistle and Colin gave her a gentle push so Logan could swing open the door wide enough for all of them to pour out of it into the portico. Rory looked back to them and rolled her eyes before she headed over to a guy leaning against a pick-up truck.

Logan, having fought his way to first row places along with Colin and Finn, leaned against a big cast iron decorating the portico to take a closer look at the man who momentarily had Rory's heart. There were two things obvious from the spot on: First, that this guy for sure wasn't one of them, but then, Logan had already figured that out. Otherwise he would have learned of this boyfriend a whole a lot earlier. The obvious work clothes the guy wore (jeans, t-shirt, shirt and some cheap, ugly brown jacket) also spoke of the lack of money, not to mention of his lack of taste, though the shining blue pick-up behind him wasn't too bad. But then, who knew if this was his car or just a loan from some friend with a little more money. Second, that it got clear, as the guy looked past Rory to the guys, that he wasn't in the best of moods and the Yale guys being here with Rory only fueled that bad mood. Well, he'd better not try something. Most people believed that rich boys couldn't hold themselves in a fight. Sometimes that was true, but most of them did sports and for most of them that included at least one martial arts. Not to mention that most of them were pretty good shooters. So if the guy was out for a fight he would find himself very surprised – and definitely defeated.

All in all, it was obvious why Richard and Emily were against this relationship.

Finn, standing between Colin and Logan, hooked his arms around his friend's necks. "Loser," he judged, smiling a deriding smile at Dean who was still looking at them.

"Complete loser," Colin agreed, frowning a little.

Logan just gave a barely detectable nod and watched the pair closely. Rory had reached the boyfriend and was now talking to him. Unfortunately they were talking too softly for them to understand a word. Nor could he see Rory's face so he had no means to read her thoughts in it. On the other hand, he could see the guy and even more importantly, from where they were all standing, the guy could see them without them having to be careful that Rory could see them doing something.

But as he continued to keep a close eye on the scene in front of him he got an uneasy feeling. It had started when he had seen the guy's first reaction upon seeing Rory. Instead of being happy to see her he had just looked over Rory, his disapproval of her appearance obvious for the world to see. The guy really seemed to have the nerve to judge her and the guys, as they stood in the background, clad in their suits. Hell, he didn't even offer her a smile. Were Logan in his place he would have, after getting his breath back at her stunning looks, rushed over to her and swept her up into his arms, giving her a deep kiss to let her know of his appreciation and the others to clearly get the message across that she was his and his alone. This guy though did nothing, just kept standing there, with his hands deeply buried in his pockets as he looked from Rory to them and back to Rory over and over again. Actually, if Rory hadn't told him who the guy was supposed to be, then he would hardly have gotten the idea that this was her boyfriend. Perhaps a guy with history but that was all: just history.

"I doubt that this relationship will go on much longer," Colin softly said.

"Luckily for her. Then she can find out what a real man is like," Finn answered as lowly. "Right mate?" he asked, patting Logan's chest.

Logan ignored him as he watched the guy saying something that made Rory's back look rigid all of a sudden and he straightened up. He frowned. "Something's wrong," he muttered, instantly getting worried. He agreed with Colin as well but surely that idiot wouldn't have the nerve to break up with her right here and now, in front of them all? Logan may not know much about relationships but he did know at least that one should do this privately.

But sure enough, with a shake of his head and a last glare over to the watching guys, the boyfriend pushed away from the car and opened the driver's door. There he paused, looked briefly back at Rory and said something that made her slung her arms around herself. And there ran a shudder through her body that looked a lot to Logan as if she tried to hold back a cry. How dared that bastard?! Logan may be glad that from the looks of it that there was no longer a boyfriend in the picture, but not like this! Somewhere private where she was the one that sent him to hell, with no one to witness it, especially not a bunch of guys she barely knew, right in front of the house of her grandparents, full of guests! His blood boiling, he watched unbelievingly as the bastard got into the truck and, with a last look at Rory, drove away and left her standing there, looking after him, her rigid shoulders shaking slightly. Logan could almost feel her pain.

"Shit," Finn cursed, at sometime having straightened up, letting go of his friends.

Colin's face was furious as he glared into the direction the blue pick-up was disappearing to. "Asshole," he hissed.

They spoke what Logan was also thinking and he would have liked nothing better than jump into one of the sports car of his friends and race after the guy to teach him some manners. But Rory needed him right now and she was the only one he had eyes for at the moment. His feet were hurrying him over to her before he really knew it, but once he came closer to her he slowed down. Of course he couldn't say he knew how she felt right now – something like this never had happened to him. He never had been in a relationship and usually he was the one who broke off with a girl when he had enough of her. But he could tell that she was hurting, as much was clear by the way she held herself, the way her head and shoulders hang low. Carefully, he stepped to her, his heart clenching when he finally got to see her pale face with a tear that ran silently over her cheek. In one word, she looked crushed. If he ever met that fucking bastard again… No! Rory. He had to concentrate on Rory. But, what to say?

He made sure that he stood close enough so that she could feel the warmth of his body but was still careful to not touch her. Something told him that that wouldn't be what she needed right now. "You'll be okay," he told her quietly, making a promise he firmly believed. Despite the circumstances she sure was better off without that asshole. He hoped he was saying the right thing.

To his dismay though, Rory let out a heart wrenching sob at his words and shook her head, bowing slightly forward. "No…" she moaned. "Not this time." Apparently she had thought he had meant her relationship with that stupid loser. As if ever!

Logan stared at her, not really knowing what to do to lessen her pain. Well, anything was better than keep standing here in the cold where everyone could see her like that. So, as he had no idea what her girlfriends would do to make her feel better, he decided to do what he would do to cheer up one of his friends. He breathed in and looked around for the others, having felt them coming closer to them as well, building a wall around her to protect her from prying eyes. "Okay guys, that's it… back to the pool house. We have some serious bucking up to do," he told them seriously.

Colin, having stared closely at Rory and obviously lost to his own dark thoughts, jerked up and nodded. "I swiped some scotch," he said, pulling a bottle out of his breast pocket.

Finn too nodded. "I'll reenact 'The Passion of the Christ'," he promised, which caused some of the guys to cheer up, a little forced though. They all turned to go back to the pool house.

Logan though stayed where he was, barely leaving Rory out of his eyesight and sadly watched as she rubbed at her eyes, trying to hold herself together. He just hoped that once back in the pool house, with a big amount of alcohol in her, she would let herself feel comfortable enough to let loose.

"Come on, Ace," he said softly. "Nothing seems quite as bad after watching Finn's 'Passion of the Christ' – except Finn's 'Passion of the Christ'," he promised with a smile.

Rory sniffed but he was pleased to hear her also giving something that was half a cry, half a laugh as her eyes, still brimming with tears, darted briefly over to look after the guys. Once she looked back and into his eyes he offered her a heartfelt smile. Logan stared closely at her for a beat before he gently laid a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it, feeling that now she might allow the contact. At seeing the ghost of a smile on her face he turned them both to head back inside and then, after having taken one step, he slipped an arm around her and pulled her closer to him, just like he had done when he had saved her from Chase. She didn't shrug it off but even leaned in a little bit.

Quietly, they walked back to pool house to go join the others.

* * *

During the following two hours while Finn reenacted his 'Passion of the Christ' (thankfully he had shortened it up a bit), Logan stayed glued at Rory's side. They had placed her back on the couch and pushed a glass of champagne in one hand and into the other a plate with chocolate cake which one of the guys had brought back from their walk through the main house. Good thinking. Whenever Honor had wallowed over a guy there always had been a lot of chocolate involved. Apparently, while guys preferred the hard, liquid thing when feeling miserable, girls preferred chocolate and it was proved once again as Rory, after maybe half an hour, had reached for the cake while her champagne was still standing untouched on the coffee table. She was very quiet though and Logan doubted that she got much of Finn's reenactment. And he wasn't sure if he should be worried that she was so still and not a sobbing mess or be glad that she just wasn't a sobbing mess. Heaven knew that he would feel completely helpless with her weeping heartbreakingly over something Logan actually was quite glad to have happened, even though he heavily disagreed with the way it had happened.

To his surprise though Rory suddenly interrupted Finn right in the middle of his version of the process to correct him on a phrase Pilate had said. Finn, startled as no one before had ever dared him to correct him, had immediately argued that she certainly was wrong and would the public please be quiet. The guys watched interested as Rory reached for her glass of champagne, downed it in one gulp, and then looked squarely into Finn's eyes and repeated word for word the dialogue in question – of course with her corrections in it. Finn gaped at her and he wasn't the only one. But Logan had to give him it to Finn who wouldn't accept defeat and pointed out that this was no proof that she was right. Rory simply had shrugged and asked him how many times he had seen the movie. 'Twelve times, why?' he had answered. Rory had smiled. It hadn't reached her eyes, but it was a smile none the less. 'Then my dear Finn, I fear that it will be obvious that I with my twenty-eight times should remember the dialogue better than you', she had answered, rendering the entire group speechless. Who after all was crazy enough to watch that movie more than perhaps two times maximum? Finn didn't count as everyone knew he was weird, or exotic like he insisted. Still, Finn wouldn't have been Finn to even accept that argument so in the end a transcript had to be searched on the internet and thankfully, was found. Otherwise, Logan was certain that one of them would have had to eventually go race to a video shop to go rent it out. Needless to say that Rory had indeed been right.

So it came that for the rest of the night, Finn got corrected every time by Rory when he quoted something wrong, which happened often enough that Finn looked very darkly at her by the end of it. The rest of them enjoyed this immensely, partly because it was always good when Finn finally got beaten on his own turf, partly because this simply was hilarious. Even more so, if you considered what Rory had just went through. Of course, they all made sure that Rory's glass was never empty and there was always something sweet or salty near her though Logan doubted that she really noticed it. So it was no wonder that once Finn was finished and bowed, with a glare at Rory, their girl was more than just a bit tipsy. She still stayed pretty normal though. It looked like a drunken Rory wouldn't jump onto the table and give them a striptease. Too bad. But in reality, Logan was glad to learn that. He hated it when girls grew totally wild while drunk. It was embarrassing and mostly not sexy at all.

The crowd around the couch loosened up a bit and most of the guys wandered off. Logan stayed where he was, sitting closely beside her, his arm draped loosely around her shoulders. Not once had she shrugged it off and Logan guessed that she was in need of a little contact. Colin too stayed where he was, in the leather chair on their right. Even Finn came back to them, once he had received all comments on his play, and threw himself on Rory's other side.

"Tell me one thing, Gilmore… where the hell did you learn all that about movies and music?" Finn asked her, looking grudgingly at her.

Rory shrugged. "Easy. Mom and I are TV junkies and my best friend's obsessed with Rock n' Roll since she was six years old, which, if you know her family, is a small miracle. Not that my mom is far behind her."

"Hmm… I think I would like to meet those two sometime," Finn said after a moment.

Rory laughed. "They would love you, I think. But it's unlikely to happen."

"And why?" Colin asked.

"They're not part of this world," Rory bitterly said, waving around the pool house that probably was a lot more luxurious than many houses of normal people were. "Especially not Lane."

"But you are," Colin pointed out.

Rory was just about to take another sip of her champagne when she paused to look confused at him. "No… no I'm not," she tonelessly denied.

"Sorry to break it to you love, but you are. Or you wouldn't be here on this party, wearing all that glitter here," Finn dryly corrected her and gave one of her earrings a flick to send it swinging.

Still confused, Rory reached up and tentatively touched the big diamond pendant that rested on her neck. Again she shook her head. "No. They're my grandma's. She just loaned them out to me – not that I had asked for it," she muttered darkly.

Finn shook his head. "The important word here is 'grandma' love. Or do you think she would have let just anyone wear the family jewels?" Rory said nothing and Logan could feel how much this talk disturbed her. "You're a Gilmore, love, and you better get used to it. Learn to deal with it."

Though Finn was undeniable right, Logan didn't think that now was the right moment for this. She sure had already been through enough tonight. He squeezed her shoulder a bit, forcing her to look at him. "Say Ace, I'm wondering – how did your grandparents trick you into this?"

Rory smiled. "By telling me this is an alumni party," she said.

"Same with me," Colin sighed.

"Yeah, and I already told my parents how very amused _I_ had been to see where we had ended eventually," Finn added darkly.

Rory looked surprised at them and then at Logan. He nodded, confirming that it had been the same with him.

"Yet I've never seen you on a party before. So why this time?" Colin asked, looking curiously at her.

As Rory blushed, Logan raised an eyebrow and exchanged a look with his friends. Hmm, this could get interesting.

"I've been on a few parties here," Rory defensively said, avoiding their eyes.

Oh yeah, definitely interesting. "So you just go to parties thrown by your grandparents?" Logan asked.

Looking relieved, Rory nodded.

Logan smiled at her. "Sorry Ace… Like I've said, my parents are friends of your grandparents. That means that I have been on many parties here… can't remember ever having seen you here," he told her with a smirk.

Rory blushed some more, but she did look back at Logan. "But then that's hardly new with you, right _Master_?"

Of course she remembered that. Forget one time the name of a girl and she'll never let you live it down! But if she thought that would be enough to let her off the hook then she was wrong. "But _then_, seeing as your grandparents would have proudly showed you off to their friends just like they have done it tonight, it's pretty much impossible that I wouldn't have remembered that, would I?" he asked smugly. "So spill it Ace. Sooner or later you will anyway, so why make your life any harder?"

There was the glare! Oh, how he had missed it over the past few hours. His smile grew, the glare intensified.

"He's right you know," Colin chimed in. "There's no way we're letting you off the hook."

"Just get it over with," Finn nodded as well. "You'll feel better then."

"You've heard them Ace," Logan probed.

Her eyes narrowed down on him. "What's with the 'Ace' anyway? I'm not fond of nicknames."

Aha, Logan had wondered when that question would come. "Says the girl who introduced herself as Rory," he joked.

"That's not the same! My mom's already Lorelei, so I'm Rory. Besides, Rory is still a name, unlike _Ace_," Rory protested, her glare once again hitting him.

"Aww, but you'll like it, Ace, as in _ace_ reporter," Logan emphasized with a grin at seeing her surprise. "And you still owe us an answer, Ace," he reminded her. The more she stalled, the more he wanted to know why.

"Fine!" Rory finally gave in and sighed. "You were right: I knew they were tricking me into something. I'd never have dreamed of this though," she waved her hand at the room full of guys. "But I knew something was up."

She had? Well, then she had known more than them. After all, they had just wondered what the rush was, not suspecting that it wouldn't be an alumni party. Of course he wasn't going to tell her that. Besides, she still evaded a direct answer. "The same question remains, Ace… why come at all then?" he insisted.

Once again blood rushed into her cheeks as she looked down and sighed. "Because _they_ tricked me," she said quietly.

"What?" Finn asked, voicing exactly Logan's thought.

"When they called to tell me about the party they did it together. I… well… You see… they uh…" her voice trailed off.

"You mean your grandparents taking some time off from each other?" Colin asked gently.

Ah, now it was making sense to Logan. Apparently she hadn't known if they new about Richard and Emily's separation. She had still a lot to learn if she thought this could still be a secret after these many months.

Rory nodded. "It's been months since they had done anything together. Usually, when they were in the same room, they just fight." She sighed. "Then, all of a sudden, they call me together, tell me _they_ had planned this party and that _they_ would love so much for me to come. And I… well I've been trying to talk some sense into them since ages. They… you know, they're just so perfect together and it hurt so much to see them like that, so angry, each of them so alone. I just wanted them to get back together," she admitted in a small voice. "So I fear I was too excited to see them at least working together again in order to scheme something together that I forgot just how bad they can get and how vicious and clever their little plans usually are."

She didn't look at any of the guy's eyes. If she had she would have seen just how astonished they were. Logan had thought of a few reasons why she had come to this party, but this? Never. Why should he? He cared about no one's relationship enough for wishing it to keep intact. But then, he seldom saw a happy couple. His parents stayed together even if there was no love between his mother and father, they presented a façade of a marriage. And that represented most marriages he knew.

"Oh love…" Finn sighed and shook his head. "What are we going to do with you? You're such a Bambi."

"I am not!" she protested, looking up at him. "Just because I want my grandparents to be together doesn't mean that I'm a Bambi!"

Finn just looked pointedly at her.

"Relax, Ace. It's nothing to be ashamed of. It sure was the best reason I've ever heard for going to one of these parties," Logan reassured her with a grin.

"What about the fun? And the booze?" Finn asked with wide eyes.

"Sorry Finn, but I have to agree with Logan. Rory's better." Colin sided with Logan.

Rory shook her head but then looked at Finn. "Ha! Hear that? But I'm still not a Bambi. If at all, I'm Sid."

"Oh no, you can't be Sid. I'm Sid. Besides, you have the wrong sex for that and that just suits me fine, love. And you're not crazy enough to be Sid," Finn immediately protested.

"Not crazy? Finn, Finn, Finn, you don't really know me if you think I'm not crazy. Who here knows the 'Passion of the Christ' the best, hmm?" Rory fired back. "Besides, your second argument doesn't count as I would be the wrong sex to be Bambi as well or have you forgotten that Bambi is a boy?"

"The point though is that you're Bambi because you're young and naïve and a softie just like Bambi, whereas Sid's nothing else but a crazy, but lovable and funny guy, a healthy adult with success with the ladies and you have to admit that that's just me, don't you?" Finn argued.

"Oh no… You didn't just call me naïve and even worse, a softie!" Rory gasped. "Here I am arguing bravely with you instead of bawling my eyes out over my fresh new break-up with my boyfriend and you call me a softie. Now, I'm at least Sly worthy."

"Sly? No love, I can't see you as Sly. But I'll give you Aniston," Finn said in a way that meant take it or leave it.

"What the hell are you two talking about?" Colin asked, looking confused from one to the other.

'Good question,' thought Logan, though he believed that he had followed them probably a bit better than Colin had. He at least had caught the last two references. Sid though was a mystery to him. What he found more interesting was that Rory had mentioned the boyfriend. Or rather said, _ex_-boyfriend, Logan corrected himself with not just a little glee. This boyfriend, though having been only shortly in the picture, at least for Logan, had really been a thorn in his eyes. Hmm, Rory had mentioned a few things that made him wonder if this had been the first time she and this Dean had broken up. Before she had said 'no, not _this_ time'. And now she had mentioned '_new_ break-up'.

"You don't watch much television, do you?" Rory asked Colin, causing Finn and Logan to snort. Nope, Colin was in one word an idiot in anything that concerned movies or star-gossips for that matter. Strangely though he was always the one best informed about the newest gossip of the high society.

Colin shook his head. "Sooo… how long were you with that loser?" he asked, causing three pair of eyes glaring at him. "What? She mentioned him first!" he defended himself.

Logan rolled his eyes. God, sometimes, Colin was even more sensitive than Finn, and sometimes, like now, he was the biggest insensitive jerk of them all.

Rory though sighed. "Since beginning of the summer this time and he's not a loser. You don't know him, so don't just go off and judge him, Colin."

There it had been again. '_this_ time.' God, Logan hoped that she wouldn't get back together with him again. Perhaps they had such a on again/off again thing going on.

"I think I've seen enough," Colin said with a face.

"He was angry, Colin," Rory sighed. "And hurt."

"But…"

Logan threw him a warning glare and shook his head once. It was obvious that Rory wasn't yet ready to let anyone talk that jerk down.

"This time?" Finn interrupted Colin at the same time. The question made Logan quickly turn back to Rory.

"Huh?" Rory asked.

"You said this time. Wasn't this the first time you and Dean broke up?" Finn inquired, gently.

"Oh… no," she answered and looked into her glass. After a moment, she made a one swallow down again. "No, it's been the third time."

"Third?" Logan asked alarmed, thinking back to the off and on thing.

Rory downed another glass right after Finn had finished refilling it. "Yep. He was my first boyfriend, you know. First time was at our three month anniversary, right after he told me he loved me. Nice twist, huh?" She laughed bitterly. "He had a talent to pick his moments, I gotta say. If you thought this one was bad then you should have seen the last time, after we had been together almost two years. Seems he likes a crowd… back then he had done it on the middle of a dance floor, in front of the whole town to witness it. Whoopee ho! Oh well, I guess I have to give him points that he had waited until the twenty-third hour of the dance marathon so most people were either passed out, had gone home to sleep or, like in Taylor's case, had been too drunk by then to really get it." She shook her head and her eyes flared up. "At least this time he chose to do it in front of people who haven't known me for my whole life, so if I avoid going home I'm at least spared those damn pitiful looks. But no, they won't be pitiful this time, this time they'll be glad and will whisper that they knew it just had to end like this and that it would serve me just right. And you know what? They would be right." Her eyes now blazing with anger, she leaned forward to give herself a refill, the first time Logan had ever seen her do that. The bottle was empty though. She looked at Finn. "I need something to drink. Something strong, not this girlie stuff. Actually, why don't you go get the Tequila?"

Whoa… did someone just made a complete one eighty degree turn around? Had Rory really just asked Finn to go get her Tequila?

"Uh… not that I wouldn't love to serve you your wish, milady… but are you sure?" Finn asked uncertainly, glancing past her at Logan.

Logan shrugged uncertainly, just as Rory leaned forward. "Just because I don't drink often doesn't mean I don't know how to drink. I wouldn't be my mother's daughter if I hadn't learned at least a few things about the second mother milk. Now go get me my Tequila or do I really have to go myself?" At Finn's wide eyes she suddenly laughed. "Told you I'm not Bambi. I'm waiting, Finn."

A grin spread over Finn's face and he jumped up. "My deepest apology milady. I'll be right off to get you your heart's desire," he promised and bowed before he hurried over to the bar.

Logan looked at Rory, not really sure if this was a good idea. Not that he saw any problem in drowning your sorrows in alcohol – but it just didn't seem like Rory. "Hey, you okay?" he asked, briefly touching her arm.

She turned to him and looked him into the eyes for a long moment. Then she shook her head. "No. But I will be. Believe me, it's not that much of a drama. I've seen it coming. I just…" her voice trailed off and for a moment, her eyes glistened with tears. "Let's just drink and have some fun," she pleaded.

Logan squeezed her arm. That he could give her. He looked at Colin, who nodded and got up. After all, if one knew how to party, then it was him, Colin and Finn. At her brave smile he felt his heart clench for her. Well, the night might have sucked so far for her, but it was still young. He and his friends would make sure that this would turn out to be the sub-party of the year.

* * *

By the time they had to leave the pool house it had turned out that it had just been that… the sub-party of the year. Not that Logan could remember much as, after the second bottle of tequila, everything had vanished in a bit of a haze. But he did remember that they had had a lot of fun – Rory included. And he also remembered that Rory had been true to her word. She did know how to drink. Oh, they would still beat her in any drinking game, but she could keep up with them – or perhaps she had simply drunk less than the rest of them. It had been enough though to make her forget that bastard for a while. At least that was what he thought as she had never mentioned the looser again. Instead she had laughed, had joked, had thrown herself head first into the party. Hell, she even let herself talk to do a reenactment of some scenes from 'Much Ado About Nothing' with Finn, them taking on the roles of Beatrice and Benedict but it had been hilarious. Unbelievable how anyone could talk that fast – especially with the amount of booze they both had in their blood by then. Yeah, Logan thought that she had had a good time.

But then, she was a girl. So not of the same species as guys. Perhaps all that had only been a front – but then it had been one hell of a front.

After they had tidied everything up, at least he hoped the bunch of guys hadn't overlooked anything. They – Colin, Finn, and Logan – volunteered to take Rory home. He would have preferred to bring her back with them to Yale, but she had insisted that she needed to get home to her hometown. Mumbled something about a shopping trip she and her mother had planned. So it came that, under Rory's direction, the chauffeur found his way to that sleepy town of hers. Not that he saw much of it. First, it was too dark outside and second, he was too preoccupied watching Rory as she kept up an argument about Bush's politics with Colin at the same time as arguing with Finn about the ten best and worst songs of the year. She sure was the only girl he knew who could hold a sensible conversation after the amount of champagne and tequila he knew was in her blood. Let alone two, though it was probably discussable if the music thing was really sensible.

Hell, she was the only girl he knew with who one could have a sensible talk with at all. Well, that wasn't quite true. Honor too was one he could talk with, but that wasn't the same. She was his sister after all. And, though Honor was far from stupid, she couldn't keep up with Rory. That girl was just smart. And funny. And hot.

Damn. Intelligent, funny and beautiful – what a lethal combination. And so dangerous. So very, very dangerous.

He took in her bright eyes, her reddened cheeks, the way her head moved from Finn to Colin and back, causing the diamonds to sparkle on each movement, took in the way she sat there between his two best friends, them having a great time, being comfortable in the soft leather seats of the limousine. He had learned a lot about her tonight, the most important thing though was the way she had moved in this world that was his home since forever – and pretty certainly forever. She was a natural, he could see that, as much as he could see it just how much she hated it, was bored by it. Yet, she had fun on the sub-party, had no problem keeping up, despite her being an outsider technically. Not to mention that she had been the only girl.

There was something else he had learned tonight. The whole boyfriend thing had shown him two things. First, that he couldn't see her being hurt. He still could kill that asshole for that. And second, that he didn't want to see her with that guy. Not that there was much danger of that going to happen, or so he hoped. Problem was that he had realized that he probably wouldn't be comfortable with seeing her with any guy either.

And that deeply disturbed him. It was obvious that he started to like Rory a little bit too much. And he wasn't ready for that to happen in his life.

The car slowed down just as Rory had managed to render both her opponents speechless for the moment. At seeing her victory, she laughed out and patted their knees before she turned her sparkling eyes to Logan. "Two down, one to go. I think I still owe you for a few last words in the past, Huntzberger."

Logan grinned and shook his head. "Dream on, Ace. I admit you're good. But I'm still better. And the address is Master and Commander, Ace, please try to remember that in the future."

She turned her head to Colin and Finn. "Isn't it sad how such a promising young man can be so disillusioned? I really think you should see if you can't get him some help about that problem, guys."

Finn sighed sadly. "Already tried that one, love. But I fear there's no hope left for him."

"Luckily they said we don't need to get him committed yet, as long as we can keep an eye on him," Colin added.

"You should button up then, 'cause I fear he got a little out of hand lately," Rory grinned. "After all, he thinks he's Russell Crowe. Next thing he'll run around in a gladiator's armor."

At the visual Rory had just conjured up the boys stared at her dumbfounded before Colin and Finn broke out into laughter.

"Great, love, simply great!" Finn gasped. "What do you say Colin? Next party's theme… Russell Crowe?"

"Better make it Gladiator," Colin laughed and smirked at Logan.

Logan glared at them. "Funny," he sarcastically commented. Idiots. His friends were drunken idiots. And Rory wasn't much better.

"Hehe, I think I just got my last word, didn't I?" Rory asked the drunken idiots.

Finn high-fived with her. "You sure have, love! You rock, girl!"

"Ace, Ace, Ace. Do you really think this lame attempt could count as anything?" Logan corrected them, shaking his head. "The only excuse you have is that you're as drunk as these idiots here."

"Hey!" Colin protested while Rory glared at him.

"No one's ever as drunk as I am!" Finn too protested.

Logan just smiled at them, and with that, won yet again.

"Ah, don't worry, love," Finn consoled Rory and laid an arm around her. "We'll get him back at the Gladiator party," he promised.

To lose to Finn! Oh well, Logan could live with that. He and Finn were pretty much even. Though he had to admit that he was a bit worried that that stupid Gladiator idea was seeping a little bit too much into Finn. He was still hopeful that by tomorrow, they would have forgotten about it. But he started to get his doubts.

But he hadn't been the only one who had noticed that he had lost his last word. Rory looked gleefully at him. "Ha!" she exclaimed and turned to Finn. "Thanks!" she said and gave him a kiss on the cheek that actually made Finn blush, making Logan laugh. Finn wasn't easy to surprise because of his nonchalant character but his Ace sure had scored quite a few times tonight with him.

"Hey! What about me? I was on your side too!" Colin protested, feigning hurt.

"Oh, of course. Sorry Colin," Rory smiled and turned to give him a kiss on the cheek as well, making yet another of Logan's friends blushing.

"So…" Rory said as she settled back into her seat and raised an eyebrow. "Did I pass the test?"

"What test?" Logan asked, puzzled.

"If I'm party girl enough?" Rory elaborated.

Logan exchanged a brief glance with his friends. Did she really think that they had tested her? Or was this one of her bluffs?

"Love, you're _the_ party-girl," Finn finally answered.

"Passed with flying colors," Colin nodded.

"Not that we really tested you," Logan assured her.

"Well then…" Rory beamed. "Wooohoooo!!" she then suddenly yelled, making the guys jump, just as the car stopped – and wince at the shrill sound.

"We're here, Sir," the chauffeur informed over the intercom.

Rory laughed at the still startled faces of the guys and grabbed her things. "Looks like I have the last word after all," she giggled and opened the door.

Realizing her little scheme, Logan had to laugh. All right, because of the night she had, he would have let her have this last word. But she'd better watch out next time.

Finn and Colin, coming out of their astonishment, started to whistle. Logan got out after her with a grin and paid his own tribute by acting as if he trimmed a guitar. "Woohooo!" he yelled himself, declaring his defeat.

She looked back at him and he could see that she had gotten the message. She smiled at him and mouthed a 'thank you'. Logan nodded, barely noticeable.

Rory turned to go up to the porch of the house, stumbling a bit. "Whoa, Ace, you need some help there?" Logan called out, half amused, half worried. Perhaps he should have accompanied her to the door. She did have quite a lot to drink after all.

But Rory had already caught herself and just waved back at them. "Bye!"

A moment later she vanished into the house and, after a last look at the house, Logan turned to get back into the limo. As soon as he had closed the door after him, Colin gave the chauffeur the signal to drive on.

"Where to?" Colin asked after a moment.

Finn shrugged. "Don't care as long as there's a bar and some redheads," he yawned.

Colin sighed. "Logan?"

"Hmm?" he asked. He hadn't really listened to them, his thoughts still being with Ace.

Colin and Finn exchanged a look. Oh, Logan was really getting tired by that.

"So… how long will you wait before you'll make your move, mate?" Finn asked casually.

"What?" Logan asked with frown.

"Don't play stupid Logan," Colin warned him. "It's clear that she'll need some time now, after the way that jerk treated her tonight. And of course they apparently had been together for a few months, not to mention the additional past between them, but I don't think you have to wait very long. Perhaps a month or, to be safe, perhaps two. Then I think she will be healed enough to consider dating again."

For a moment Logan stared at him before he looked away. He knew it was futile to pretend that he didn't know what they were talking about. Nor had he any illusions that he could avoid this conversation any longer – he knew his friends too well for that. So he sighed. "_If_ I want to date her," he reminded them.

"Oh please Logan," Finn exasperated snorted. "It's obvious that you're at least intrigued…"

"I'd call it hooked," corrected Colin.

Finn ignored him and continued. "And you'd be a fool not to be. That girl's something else. I know why you're reluctant to give up your lifestyle, but it would be worth it for the right girl and Rory could be just that girl. Or when was the last time you met a girl that's not only beautiful, but is also intelligent enough to keep up with you? Plus, she proved tonight that she can fit just perfectly into our world, if she wants to. Or let's keep it simpler… when was the last time that you felt this much about a girl?"

Logan was quiet. The answer was obvious enough.

"This wouldn't be a good idea," he said after a moment, meaning every word. There were so many reasons why this would be a very, very bad idea.

"And why not?" Colin asked gently.

Logan shook his head. No way could he give a clear answer to that. Hell, he wasn't sure himself why that was so. He just knew that it was.

"The question though is, no matter what you may think now, if you're ready at all to let her walk out of your life," Finn pointed out, making Logan look annoyed at him.

"We were fine without dating so far. There's nothing against us just being friends," Logan defensively answered. He wasn't right, was he? Him not daring to date Rory wouldn't cause her to vanish out of his life again, would it? He didn't want that. Especially not after tonight.

Finn shook his head and muttered something under his breath.

Colin too sighed exasperated. "Yeah, but she's had that boyfriend until tonight and she's certainly not a cheat. But now? The sexual tension between you two is just too much for you to be friends only," he stated.

"There's no…" Logan stopped, not really being able to deny that it bristled between him and Rory. "It's not that deep," he said in the end.

"Oh please, you two could keep a small country running for weeks with the electricity that flows between you two whenever you're together," Finn snorted.

As that was closer to the truth than Finn probably knew, Logan preferred to say nothing. Besides, he knew that they just wanted to help him. But not even they could help him here. He alone had to decide what he wanted – or what he was ready to risk. And he felt torn. A big part of him wanted Rory to be in his life _and_ bed. It never had been a question if he was attracted to her after all. That he had been from the moment he had turned rather annoyed at the intrusion – until he had taken one look at the equally annoyed girl in front of him and had noticed her beauty. It wasn't a joke back then when he had told Finn to write down his number.

Another big part of him though was wary and recognized several dangers this girl brought with her. He'd have to change his lifestyle. No more random girls as he really couldn't see Rory in a casual relationship. He'd probably have to cut back on the parties as well. She would try to get him more serious with his studies. It could get problems with the families. To name only a few.

And, he may lose his heart.

And even if he decided to pursue her, there still was one big uncertain factor in the equation… Rory. Who knew if she'd even consider dating him? She may have warmed considerably to him, but there was nothing that would indicate that she had changed her opinion of him enough to risk going out with him.

"What gives you the idea that she would even want to go out with me? I'm still the playboy after all, with way too much money for her liking, money that I don't use any wiser than for my own entertainment," Logan heard himself ask his friends before he was able to stop himself.

"After this night with you taking the role of her knight in a green suit? Please, mate, don't tell me you really think she still doesn't like you!" Finn grinned. "It had already been crystal clear after you two made that jump on the last event. And now after tonight, after first saving her from slickslug and then cheering her up after that disastrous break-up we all had the honor to witness? She's going to love you, once it sinks in, and I think that is her only fault besides not being a redhead."

"I second that," Colin nodded. "Well, without that last comment of course."

Logan looked at them, ridiculously feeling pleased by their reassurances. Yeah, he too thought that there was something between them, but who could blame him that he had doubts? One minute that girl nearly ripped off his head, in another he could almost swear she flirted with him – unconsciously, making it all the more intriguing.

"Anyway, like I said, you have still some time to decide what you want," Colin said. "Though I would recommend you to stay close to her during that time. And don't take too much time, buddy."

"Colin's right," Finn nodded. "It may help you to come to your senses and in the meantime you put a claim onto her."

Logan frowned. "Apart from the fact that she would want to have my balls for that why should I put a claim on her?" he asked, uncomfortable because he feared he knew the answer.

Sure enough, his friends rolled his eyes. "You're as bad as her, you know?" Finn exasperatedly exclaimed.

"You know as well as I that after tonight, she'll be free for all those guys back on that party," Colin too told him, exasperated. "Meaning that she's now on the market and I don't know about you, but though I have confidence in her, I'm not sure if she's really up to protecting herself against the losers that will try to get to more money and power through her. The Gilmores' fortune is a nice bait after all, only being sweeter that the means to get it is to simply have to win the heart of a cute, beautiful girl."

"Not to mention that half of the guys at the sub-party have fallen in love with her tonight – and know as well as we that she may need some time right now, but soon, she will be looking for a little fun again and I assure you that she will find many willing to offer themselves," Finn considered and turned burning eyes onto Logan. "So you better get your act together mate."

Logan stared for a moment at them before he turned his head away, biting his lips. Damn they were right. Not for long and the guys would swarm around her like bees around their queen. And though Logan wasn't so worried about the gold diggers – Rory was too smart to fall for them –he was worried about the others. They hadn't been at the sub-party for being idiots or jerks, but because they were okay guys, interesting in one way or another. And not one of them would need more money.

"Now that we've given you enough to think about, I'm done with deep, meaningful talks. Where's the next bar?" Finn turned to Colin.

Colin shrugged. "No idea. I'll just tell the chauffeur to get us to the next good address."

"Do that. And he should hurry. The bar's almost empty!" Finn urgently reminded Colin.

Logan tuned them out, watching the street lights as they drove by. They sure had given him a lot to think about. And he had come to the realization that for now, he would wait and see what would happen and simply let himself drift with the flow. Hopefully, somehow, somewhere, there would be a sign for him that would tell him what to do. Right now though, Rory needed a friend who knew how to bring her to relax a little and have some fun. He would be that friend. Not to mention that it would be one hell of a fun to see her annoyance and her glares while doing that.

Yeah, that would be exactly what he'd do. Give her a few days to get over the thing with the loser, maybe a week or two.

After that, Ace should better watch out.

* * *

_TBC!_

_(Author's note: I'm honestly wondering how I managed to make this even longer than the last one. R/L had only four scenes with each other, and actually only three really counting. But oh… what wonderful moments! I fear though what monsters I'll have to battle once I get to the episodes that are full of Rogan… sigh. Anyway, I hope you like the additional scenes here. And yeah, I know some of them are a bit silly, but hey, they were drunk and this is Gilmore Girls after all! Hope you enjoy it none the less! And in the meantime, I'll see what I can come up with for 'Not As Cute As Pushkin' – or as I titled it more simply: The Prank!)_


	5. Pranks

**Chapter 5: Pranks**

**(But Not as Cute as Pushkin)**

Over the following few weeks Logan saw to it that he and Rory would run into each other occasionally. Of course, totally _accidentally_. The most likely places where that could happen were naturally the coffee stands. A coffee junkie, his Ace seemed to be at her regular stands so frequently that it was just bound to happen that they would meet there at one time or another. After all, their very first meeting, though he could not remember it, had been at a coffee stand. Besides, she may believe that he too went to get coffee but hardly that they'd run into each other before a classroom or even, gasp, in a library. And, of course, it couldn't be early in the morning, not that he would have dreamed of getting up early just to catch her for her first dose of coffee.

It wasn't after all as if he changed his whole schedule just so he could run into Rory. Surely not. Okay, yeah, he knew her schedule by heart by now and had noticed certain habits of hers. It wasn't much trouble to see that he'd be at the coffee stand in front of the Sterling Memorial Library around four pm on Mondays or Wednesdays. During those days her last classes would have ended ten, fifteen minutes before, and usually, she then came here to the library to study and get a little homework done. But before she entered she always went to get herself two large cups of coffee. On bad days, three. After trying a few meeting points out, Logan had come to the conclusion that he liked this one here the best. First of all, because Finn and Colin usually weren't with him as they were occupied elsewhere at these times and second, because then Rory was more likely to have a short conversation with him as she wasn't pressed for time to get to a class. He'd be already there, ordering his coffee, and sometimes, he would come after her. At the beginning, she had seemed surprised, the first time she actually had been pretty embarrassed as it had been also the first time since the party at her grandparents that they've seen each other again. She had fumbled with her coins and barely made eye contact. Amused, he had paid for both their coffees and simply asked her about something that had been in the paper that day. He wasn't sure anymore what exactly. Something about the strained relationship between the government and Germany he thought. Two seconds later they had been in a heated discussion, every thought of awkwardness forgotten.

And to be honest, Rory hadn't been the only one who was reluctant to talk about that party. Logan wasn't keen for it either as he still was unsure how he felt, what he felt, what he wanted, what exactly happened that evening or what he thought about Finn's and Colin's words to him about it. In short… he knew nothing. And he was quite content to let it remain that way, at least for the moment. But he did remember his promise to himself to get his Ace to live a little more and he was trying to do just that. The emphasis was on trying. God, that girl really could be stubborn! Of course, at the first few run-ins, he hadn't mentioned a word about maybe, eventually meeting with some friends, namely Colin and Finn, and have a little fun together. No, then he held it basically to casually chatting – at least that was what he thought it was. He didn't usually chat with girls. To his surprise though, he found himself enjoying their little chats. Their conversations could be about anything and everything. Sometimes they talked about politics. He knew that Rory didn't think much about his diligence in his school work, but she did seem to assume that he was knowledgeable and well-informed about what was going on in the world. Probably because of who his father is. But, as he actually was reading the newspaper daily he had no problem with her thinking that, though it had nothing to do with his father. Just because he hated the way his father forced him into that business didn't mean he had to hate reading the paper. He just had his little private revenge by refusing to read anything that the family owned. Not that he had told Rory that.

At other times they'd talk about a movie or television show, though Logan was not an expert, but at least he was still better at this subject matter than with music. Matters about History had often popped up too in their conversations and he was slightly better than her in this area. She knew more trivia but Logan was better in dates and historical facts and intrigues. And of course, she had no chance against him in sports. One of the few topics she knew nothing about and when he said nothing, he meant nothing. He seriously wondered how she had ever managed to pass sports in high school. It was no question of course that he just loved to tease her about her lack of knowledge there and usually it would end with Rory getting annoyed and rushing off in a huff.

Sometimes, Finn and or Colin would be with him as well and while they all discussed or bantered with each other Logan secretly loved to see her interacting with his friends. Well, actually, they were her friends as well by now, though, he doubted whether Rory had realized that. For someone so smart she really had a problem seeing the obvious. Anyway, it was hilarious how she responded to Finn's different phases or to his repeated standard question of if they've met before. Actually, she handled him as if she was used to a unique person like Finn and frankly said that was a very scary thought. Last week, when all three of them had watched with shaking heads as Finn raced away after a redhead Colin had asked Rory how it was that she was so unfazed by their crazy Australian friend. Rory had laughed, the laugh Logan liked so much to hear, because it was bright and singing and full of joy and happiness that it touched his heart. "Cause I grew up in a town of loonies. Believe me, Finn is normal compared to a few characters living there. Actually, he's nothing compared to Kirk." Logan and Colin had exchanged a long look and then both had shuddered. Someone worse than Finn? Someone who'd make him look normal? No, no, no, hardly possible and if it was really true, then neither of them were excited to meet this guy. They had their hands full with Finn as it was.

Yeah, those short meetings were fun and he did feel that Rory was warming more and more to them. But that stupid girl just wouldn't allow him to whisk her away to some real fun. Finn had been the first to invite her to a party and since then all three of them tried to get her to come out with them. Her response was always the same: she couldn't, she had to study. Or she had to finish a paper. Or an article was due and she had to get it done or Doyle would do unspeakable things to her. And on Fridays, she always said she had to drive out to Hartford to go dine with her grandparents and her Mom. Please, who did she think she was kidding? What twenty-year-old girl would drive every week such a long way to go have dinner with her grandparents? Especially on a Friday night? Please… but then he so far hadn't been able to find out what she really was doing and it did drive him slightly crazy. On the other hand he hadn't seen Rory lie ever before and was pretty sure that she was a terrible liar. So maybe she really was telling the truth. But no, that just couldn't be… well, the mystery wouldn't remain a mystery for much longer. He'd give her a break for a couple of weeks and if that hadn't happened until then he would do a little detective work and yes, it wouldn't be beneath him to follow her. Anyway, her departure on Fridays to wherever she was going to usually resulted also in her not being back at Yale until classes started on Monday – and the few times she did come back she came back for, surprise, surprise, studying.

Ugh.

It had to be unhealthy to study so much! Not that she looked unhealthy. Quite the contrary actually. Besides, she was by far the smartest girl he knew and he knew for a fact that she was among the ten top of her year so she hardly needed to study that much!

Concerning studying, wasn't it time to run into with Rory again? Quickly, Logan checked his watch. Holy shit, he only had fifteen minutes to get across campus! Damn! He could let it slip. But it was Friday and he really wanted to see her before she vanished for the weekend. He jumped up. "I want some coffee," he said to the bunch of guys he had been with and hurriedly got his things together.

Jamie raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you just had one?" he asked, surprised.

"Well, and now I want another. See you tomorrow! Party starts at nine, right?" Logan asked absentmindedly. Only fourteen minutes left.

Jamie nodded and opened his mouth to say something else, but at that point Logan had already rushed off. Puzzled, Jamie looked at the coffee stand that stood only a few feet away and shook his head. Lately, Huntzberger had been really acting… strangely.

* * *

Exactly eighteen minutes later Logan arrived at the stand nearest to the parking lot where Rory had her car parked, only slightly out of breath.

"Look, look, who we have here… If that's not Logan Huntzberger. Though I'm not quite sure, the way he gasps for air like a fish out of water. What do you think, mate? Is it our dear friend or Nemo?"

"Hmm, I agree, it's hard to detect, but I think this here is actually indeed our friend."

"Aye, me thinks you are correct. But then I wonder what could have had our mate here in such a hurry?"

"Surely it must be something very gravely important as we both know that Mr. Huntzberger here has a serious dislike of going any faster than in a nice, comfortable tempo."

Still trying to force his burning lungs back into a regular breathing, Logan glared darkly at his so called friends. "What… are you… doing here?" he asked with gritted teeth between desperate gasps for air.

Finn grinned his two-hundred watt smile. "Well, waiting for Reporter Girl of course, and trying for the umpteenth time to get her to ditch her Friday night date and instead go out with us. We can't have her missing the best party of the week after all. She's running a little bit late though," he said, looking at the direction Rory was supposed to come from.

Colin nodded. "We may not know every minute of her schedule like a certain someone here, but even we did notice that she usually stops here for coffee before she heads out to Hartford. So we're here to say goodbye."

"You perhaps, I'm here to whisk her away to that party tonight. Our girl seriously needs to loosen up a bit. Besides, it's been ages since she called it quits with that loser. It's time she graces the world with her presence again," Finn protested, throwing out his arms.

With a laugh, Colin shook his head. "Tough luck there. I doubt she'll ditch her grandparents for your party. And when had she ever graced the world with her presence?"

"All the more reason for her to come out with us!" Finn unfazed, stated.

More than just a little annoyed, Logan glared at the both of them. Damn it, he had wanted to have a couple of minutes alone with his Ace. Why had they to show up here? And since when did they care so much if Rory went out a little?

"Don't you have classes, Colin? And shouldn't you still be getting some sleep ahead for the weekend?" he asked, turning his glare from Colin to Finn.

To his dismay, the grin on both of their faces got even bigger. Great.

"Someone's a bit grumpy here, don't you think so, mate?" Finn asked, slinging an arm around Colin's neck while he scrutinized Logan with his eyes.

Colin nodded. "You could also say he seems to be in a terrible mood. I can't help but wonder if this is because of our presence here. Finn, I think we may have neglected to remember that our friend here has a serious dislike of sharing _Ace_ with anyone, even us."

Sadly, Finn nodded as well. "Ah, I knew I forgot something. Not to forget that the lovely Ms. Gilmore won't be around for the next few days, making it impossible for our lovesick puppy here to run into her, completely by chance of course."

"Oh, cut it out you two idiots," gritted Logan and demonstratively turned away from them. His eyes fell on Rory as she hurried towards the coffee stand while ransacking her bag for something. He smiled as he watched her approach them, still unaware of the three boys waiting for her. When she was only a few feet away he tore his eyes away from her and stepped up to the stand. "A cappuccino please," he ordered and looked grudgingly to Colin and Finn to see if they wanted to have something as well. But the two shook their head and each held up a cup.

"Hey, love! Just the girl we were waiting for!" Finn's voice exclaimed and Logan sent him a death glare before he turned around to look at Rory, who appeared startled. But she smiled at the boys. "Oh, hi guys. Going out to some party?" she greeted them cheerful and stepped up to the coffee stand as well. "A large coffee with cream and a cappuccino, please. He's paying, Steve," she added with a sweet smile at Logan.

"I am?" Logan raised an eyebrow. That was new. Well, of course he had paid a few times for the coffee, but mostly, each of them paid for his own since he had noticed that she wasn't too comfortable with him paying for her coffee, though she never really had said anything about it. But he could see it in her eyes and the slight frown that appeared between her eyes. He did wonder why she never said something though. And now she suddenly invited herself?

She nodded. "It will hardly deplete your pockets, Huntzberger. And I've got something to celebrate so yes, you're buying."

"Here you go," Steve said with a smile and handed Rory her two cups of coffee. "Have a safe drive. Oh, and say hi to Lorelai for me."

"Will do, Steve," Rory answered and took the coffee.

Smirking, Logan paid. "Don't you find it worrisome that you're on first name basis with almost every coffee stand guy around here? And that they even know your mom enough to greet her?"

Rory shrugged and breathed in the cappuccino, closing her eyes, before she took her first sip. With a moan, she opened her eyes again and beamed at Steve. "Heavenly as always!" Then she turned to Logan and shook her head. "Nope, not at all."

"Damn, love, you make me consider a career as a coffee stand guy," Finn sighed.

"And why would that be?" Rory asked innocently, looking shyly at Finn over the rim of her cup.

Finn wriggled his eyebrows. "I always love to get a good show for free. And here I'd actually even get paid for it. Now if that isn't a promising prospect!"

Logan and Colin both glared at him. But Rory, instead of blushing, like Logan had expected her to do, just let out one of those joyful laughs. "True, but then, you'd never get to see more and now, wouldn't that get frustrating? Besides, you'd have to get up very early Finn and you know how you react to early morning hours."

"True, true," Finn nodded and sighed.

"How much coffee did you already have? You sure no one slipped a little happy pill into one of your cups?" Colin asked mistrustfully, looking strangely at Rory.

Logan couldn't blame him. He had had similar thoughts. "Yeah, you sure you're okay?" he asked with a frown.

Again, she simply laughed. "Of course. But like I said, I've got some good news so today, I even support your ego and can only laugh about it. Same goes with Colin's snobbishness and Finn's – well - Finn."

Colin frowned but let her comment drop. "What news?" he asked instead with interest, probably voicing all their thoughts.

Her eyes lit up. "Oh, get this! I come back from my classes to get my things for the weekend and while searching for one of my notebooks I find this message about my old headmaster from Chilton who had tried to reach me ages ago! Ugh! Paris! Anyway, I called him back and he asked me to show one of their students around Yale!"

The three boys looked at each other puzzled and then back at Rory, strangely.

"That was your good news?" Finn asked with a frown.

Eagerly, Rory nodded. "Yeah! Just think about that incredible honor! Of all the Chilton alumni here at Yale he asked me, _me_, to show her around the campus, the life at college! And this will be so much fun! I can take her to all the best places like the different libraries – of course I have to show her the Gutenberg Bible at the Beinecke Library! Or take her to the Hewitt Library of course and somehow I need to take her to the Science Center as well. One cannot visit Yale and not go there! And then I'll take her to classes of course! I'll never forget how much fun I had when I visited Harvard with my mom and sat in my very first college class! Oh, isn't it great?!" She practically jumped with enthusiasm and the boys just looked at her… like she was some strange, peculiar, odd person.

"You're one very, very weird girl," Finn slowly said, shaking his head sadly.

"What? Why?" Rory asked, coming down a little from her high, to frown up at Finn.

"You went to Harvard and the high point for you was sitting in a class?" Logan pointedly asked, still having trouble grasping that concept. She really had a weird sense of fun – or what were supposed to be good news that needed to be celebrated. God, just what had he gotten himself into?

"Well, yeah," Rory nodded. "But it was really a great class. Besides, we did a lot more than just sneak into class. We also almost bought out the souvenir shop – hmm." She got a far away look before she looked at the guys again. "I think I'll go by the Yale shop to get her a mug or a t-shirt as a welcome present. Or a Yale poster which she can hang in her room and each time she'll look at it she'll remember her great time here and can dream about when she finally can come here, just like me!" She nodded, her eyes still shining and once again smiled at the boys.

Colin smiled. "You do that," he said and patted her on the shoulder while he looked over her head at Logan and Finn and shrugged.

He was right, Logan thought with a small headshake. It was hopeless.

Finn seemed to have come to the same conclusion as he let the topic drop and slang an arm around Rory. "Sooo… you mentioned something about celebrating if my ears didn't hear wrong, right? Well, you're one lucky girl Gilmore as I'm the unbeatable king of celebrating. I'm the king of partying! Trust me! You'll never forget this celebration! We'll start with that party tonight, the party of the week believe me, otherwise I wouldn't bring you there. After that we'll drive out to…"

"Finn!" Rory interrupted him with a laugh. "Not that I don't appreciate your offer, but I can't. It's Friday, remember?"

"Right… where are you going again?" Logan asked, raising an eyebrow.

She looked over at him. "To Hartford as you know very well. How many times do I have to tell you that I have dinner with my grandparents on Fridays?" she asked him with some annoyance.

"Just as long as you won't tell me the truth," Logan smirked.

Rory rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Now, love, that's no way to celebrate! Come on! Ditch your date and come with us for this weekend!" Finn protested loudly and dropped onto his knees in front of her. "Please, oh, fair maiden, don't deprive us of the joy of your presence this long weekend!"

"Excuse him, Rory, I fear we forgot to give him his medication today," Colin sighed. "But he's right. Why don't you join us? It will be fun."

Rory shook her head, chuckling, and patted Finn's head. "I have no doubt about that but I really can't. One doesn't ditch Richard and Emily. Not to mention that I have work to do over the weekend. Besides, I'll have my own fun and celebrating, in true Gilmore style, don't worry. And then, I can't wait to tell them about this, especially Grandpa! He'll be so proud!" She glanced at her watch. "Oh, speaking of it, I'm late! Bye guys! Have fun! And thanks for the coffee, Huntzberger!" With that she walked around the still kneeling Finn and raced off towards her car, leaving the boys staring after her.

For the first time Logan had no doubt that she really was heading to her grandparents. This anticipation about telling them her news just couldn't be acted. And it seemed as if she really looked forward to it. He couldn't fathom how anyone could be so cheery about seeing any relatives or going home for the weekend, but then he already had realized that Rory has a very different relationship with her family than he did. Primary difference: She loved them. And it was obvious that they in return loved her – and couldn't be prouder about her. She was right: Richard wouldn't be able to wait to tell everyone about the honor his granddaughter was given.

Finn stood up and wiped at his pants. "We have to do something about that girl. She seriously thinks that a family dinner counts as celebrating. Or that a weekend home is fun."

Logan sighed. "Not that I understand it but in contrast to us she actually has a good relationship with her family. I still wonder though why she goes to have dinner with Richard and Emily every Friday," he added, more to himself than anyone else.

But Colin answered anyway. "She has to. They made it a condition for her: They'll pay her school fees at Yale and in return she has to dine with them every Friday."

Logan's head snapped around to him. "What?" he asked unbelieving, for one, because that was the strangest concept he'd ever heard and for another, he wanted to know how Colin knew about all that.

Colin nodded. "I know, it's bizarre. Apparently Yale wouldn't grant her a scholarship or give her financial aid because her mother earned too much for that. Not enough though to really be able to afford the school fee. So she went to her grandparents and asked them for the money." He shook his head. "If you ask me, I wonder why she even tried to apply for a scholarship or aid. With her background and name it was obvious that she'd have no chance to get it. Why should they? Richard is a well known alumnus and his success and wealth aren't a secret either. Of course he would pay for his only grandchild to attend his alma mater. Nor have I any idea why Richard and Emily insist on this strange agreement. I'd bet my inheritance that they'd pay in any case."

He was undoubtedly right but that still didn't explain how he knew all this. "How come you know all this?" Logan asked just that with narrowed eyes. "And why the hell didn't you tell so before? I'm trying to solve this Friday dinner mystery for weeks!"

With a raised eyebrow, Colin looked at him. "You never asked. Besides, I would have thought she mentioned it to you at one time or another. I heard her telling you that she had to go out to Hartford for her dinner after all. And I know it because she told me of course."

"When?" Finn asked before Logan could.

"At the LDB event," Colin answered.

"You two did talk quite a lot there, didn't you?" Logan commented with a frown.

Colin let out an exasperated sigh. "Yeah, we actually did. You know Logan, _you_ had been the one who urged me to keep her company because you thought a bear would perhaps wander down from Yellowstone just to eat her up alive or that Jack the Ripper would come back from the dead just to do her in. Don't blame me now when we didn't just sit there, staring blankly, not speaking one word. Yeah, we talked. We talked a lot. Nothing more, nothing less. So stop burning me alive whenever I happen to know something you don't just because I actually bothered to get to know her a little better that evening. Because I'm telling you, I really am starting to get tired of it! _I_'m not the one you should be worried about!"

Logan was just about to say something heatedly back, when Finn quirked up and slightly pushed himself between Logan and Colin. "Oh! Do I get to see a fight? Just wait a tiny little moment! I'll need to grab myself some beer and popcorn. You don't take one swing until I'm back! Understood?"

For a moment, both Colin and Logan stared at Finn. Taking a deep breath, Logan turned away from his friends and took a few steps back. His eyes fell on Steve who watched them with obvious interest and amusement. He couldn't blame the guy. He had just gotten quite a show. But neither Steve nor Finn would get to see even more of a show. Because there was no way that he'd start a fight with one of his best friends, especially not over some random girl. And that was what Rory was: nothing else but some random girl. Right. He sent Steve a glare that made the guy quickly busy himself with whatever one does to prepare coffee and, satisfied, Logan turned back to his friends. "We should get a move ourselves if we still want to make it to that party. Let's go," he casually said and started to walk towards their dorm.

His mind though mulled over the last thing Colin had said. 'I'm not the one you should be worried about!'. What did he mean by that? Had he heard something from one of the other guys? Logan wanted to ask Colin about that, but he wouldn't bring that topic up again. Not now, not with Colin. Maybe never. The risk of getting into another fight with Colin would be too much and while Logan undeniably was interested in Rory – she wasn't worth a fight with his best friend. No girl was.

After a moment, Finn fell into step beside him. "We can be as late as we want," Finn declared. "There is no party without us."

"True, true," Colin agreed, falling into step on Logan's other side. "I just hope there will be more girls there than at the last party. There hadn't been one girl I hadn't been out with yet but two – and all I can say to those two: No, thank you."

Logan smiled. "Wouldn't be even impressed by your portfolio, huh?"

"No, they really were beneath me. I mean, they didn't even know the President's complete name. Come on!" Colin protested in a sniff. "Not that I expect you to remember that. You were too busy pushing your tongue down that blonde's throat. What was her name? Opal?"

"What can I say? The ladies just can't resist me," Logan answered with a smirk.

'All but one,' he thought with a sigh. One girl so far had no problem resisting him. Well, he was working on it and he thought, that maybe he would be able to change her mind. That was, if he really was so crazy to get himself involved even more with Rory. So far his Ace had brought him nothing else but trouble and problems. If it hadn't made life so much more interesting he would have put an end to it a long time ago. But the simple truth was that he simply couldn't stay away from her anymore.

* * *

Weekend was over and it was almost Monday evening and Logan still hadn't managed to run anywhere into Rory. She hadn't been at her usually coffee stands, at least not on time. Nor had she been in the newsroom when she should have been. For a while there he had even wondered if perhaps she hadn't come back to Yale at all, as unlikely as it seemed. But perhaps she had gotten sick – or had an accident on the road. The images in his head got worse with each point where she should be but wasn't.

Frustrated, Logan stared at the coffee stand she usually got her coffee after her Monday class. Okay, it was ridiculous, but he needed to make sure that she was okay. Unfortunately though he could only imagine one person he could ask that and that prospect didn't do much to qualm his worries. Quite the contrary actually. So, bracing himself, Logan went back to the newsroom and entered. There she was. Paris. Fighting with Doyle. Great.

"My favorite editor! How are you on this fine day?" Logan exclaimed, interrupting them that earned him a smoldering glare from Paris.

"What do you want here, Huntzberger? This is the newsroom, not the pub," she snapped.

Logan raised an eyebrow and looked around the almost empty room. "Really, could have fooled me."

"We're working here so why don't you go over to your desk and take your nap?" Paris shot back, making Doyle look scared at her.

"Actually I wanted to see if my editor has anything for me," Logan said, holding up his hands. How could Ace stand to live with that girl?

Both, Doyle and Paris, did a double take. Guess they hadn't expected that. Well, Logan had actually surprised himself with that. What the hell had gotten into him to say that? He could have just said something else. He didn't need to ask Doyle for an assignment!

"You want… want to write an article?" Doyle sputtered nervously.

Logan shrugged. "_Want_ is such a strong word. Let's just say that my father suggested strongly to me to get something published and soon," he mentioned. "So, what do you have for me, boss?" he asked, grinning when he saw Doyle paling. It was just too much fun to get that guy nervous.

"You really want me to give you something?" Doyle weakly asked again.

With a nod, Logan went over and hopped onto Rory's desk, leaning back. "And again there's that word 'want'. Sharpen your ears, Doyle. I don't want to, I have to or daddy will be seriously pissed. And it better be as good an article as that of our ace reporter here," he added, patting Rory's computer. "Where is she anyway? Shouldn't she sit here and busily write her next masterpiece?" he casually asked, finally having found an inconspicuous way to ask what he had wanted to know in the first place.

He couldn't say though that he liked the way Paris' eyes narrowed on him. "She's busy playing tour guide and just what is that the matter to you?" she asked suspiciously.

Tour guide? Oh, that high school girl she had mentioned Friday. Logan hadn't thought that she would come visit Yale this soon. Well, that explained her absence at her regular spots. Relieved that Rory wasn't hurt or sick, he totally forgot to answer Paris.

"You better not get the wrong ideas about her. She's too smart for you, Huntzberger. Not that you're her type anyway. Let me tell you, I know first hand that she despises guys like you," Paris said frowning, her eyes nothing else but two small blazing slits.

Irritated, Logan stared right back at her. Who the hell did she think she was? "I don't care at all what Gilmore is doing right now, nor do I hold any wrong ideas about her. She's not my type either!" He told her flatly and slid off Rory's desk to saunter back to stand in front of Doyle. "Have you got something for me now or not?" he impatiently wanted to know.

Doyle turned a shade whiter. "We need to cover the student uproar over Assistant Professor Warrick resigning. Do that," he finally assigned Logan after a moment.

Did Doyle just give him an order? Logan just hoped he would survive this. At least the article wouldn't be too bad. "Thank you," he emphasized and then left the newsroom quickly. As soon as he was out of the door he laughed out loud. God, how he loved to make that guy nearly shit into his pants. That was even worth the fact that he now had to actually write an article. Jeez, what he had just been thinking when he had told Doyle he wanted an assignment?!

But now, he had to hunt down Rory. He wanted to take a look at that poor high school kid and see if she was still alive. The question was just where the two would be right now. 'Okay, think', he ordered himself. The kid probably arrived sometime in the morning, and Rory for sure had dragged her already to the big monuments like Woolsey's toe and the Eli Yale bench. As well as the oldest buildings and the big hall. Hmm… Of course! Where would his Ace go last, as a dessert so to speak? Right. The libraries. But to which of all the libraries on campus? Ugh? Just why couldn't there just be one library at Yale? But no, not Yale of course! Okay, okay, that wasn't helping him in finding Rory. She often went to the Sterling, so often that Logan was pretty sure that it was one of her favorite libraries. No wonder, it was also the biggest and coziest. Good, so he would check the Sterling. He needed to borrow out a few books for his classes anyway. If she wasn't there, he'd give it up. It wasn't as if he needed to see her after all.

He wasn't so pathetic. Not yet anyway, whispered a small voice, one that Logan simply ignored.

* * *

Hmm, didn't look as if it was to be his lucky day. Rory was nowhere to be seen. Disappointed, Logan went to get himself the books he needed, pushing Rory out of his mind. A good twenty minutes later and with the help of Meg, a lovely black-haired library assistant, he had most of what he needed.

"Okay, that's the last one on your list," Meg said, holding out a thick history book about the political affairs of the last century. "For the three we didn't have on hand I'll put you on the list."

Logan smiled and leaned towards her. "And what would it cost me to get to the top of those lists?" he asked in an intimate voice.

Meg blushed and fumbled with a pen in her hand. "Well… I can't really do that," she slowly said.

"No?" Logan asked, giving her one of his best pleading looks. "Of course, I understand that… but you see, I'm really late with my work and if I don't get those books my professors will probably give me failing grades for those papers and I really, really can't afford that." He gave her a moment to let his words sink in before he casually touched her hand as he started to get the books they had found together. He smiled when he saw her blushing some more.

"Oh well… perhaps I could see what I can do for you," Meg slowly said, looking shyly at him.

"Really?" Logan asked hopefully and gave her an intimate smile. "Oh, you have no idea how much that would help me! You'd save me from a really terrible fate. Now, what can I do to thank you for that?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "How about dinner?"

She was cute in her blushing – but not as cute as his Ace. Oh well, but she had bigger boobs. And he was also pretty sure that even though she worked in a library that she wasn't as crazy for books as Ace was. Of course that was hardly possible anyway. He wasn't quite sure why he had invited her as she wasn't quite his type. Too smart for that. But she seemed nice and was ready to do something illegal for him so the least he owed her was a dinner. And why the hell did he try to justify himself here?

"Oh… uh… I…" Meg stopped her stuttering and took a deep breath. "Yeah, why not?"

Logan nodded and beamed at her. "Great! I'll be busy with these books over the next few days, but why don't you give me a call sometime next week? You have my number now. Or we'll make a date when I come get my books. All right?"

"Uh… sure," Meg nodded.

"Miss? Hey Miss! Could you help me please?" A student called over to them which startled Meg who looked over at him. "Yes, I'll be there," she promised after a moment and looked back to Logan. "Uh, I'll call you then."

"You do that," Logan said with a nod and packed the books into his bag. "Bye, Meg."

"Bye," she almost whispered before she turned away to go over to the waiting student.

Content, Logan grabbed his bag and turned to leave, grimacing at the weight. Nope, definitely no more looking for Rory. Straight back to his room it was. He was just about to head out when the sight of a very familiar girl stopped him dead in his tracks. Of course, typical. At the moment he gave up hope on finding Rory she would show up. What an irony. Amused, he watched her come in, a cute petite girl trailing after her, her mouth never stopping as she led the girl into the hall of the library. He couldn't hear what she was saying but he was pretty sure that she was saying boring facts about the library and Yale in general. The girl tried to scribble down notes and keep up with Rory at the same time. Those two sure made a funny sight. Finally, Rory stopped and turned back to face her young companion, her nose wrinkling at something. They started to talk with each other, about a topic that Rory wasn't too comfortable with as he noticed at the way she avoided the girl's eyes and bent hurriedly down to get one of the books out of the shelves in front of them. Chuckling silently, Logan put down his bag onto a nearby chair, the heavy load tearing uncomfortably at him. There was no way that he'd leave just now anyway.

Rory appeared again from behind the shelf and pushed a book at the girl. Then she reached down and pulled out another book and held it close to her body, almost embracing it. Well, it was one of those big, heavy old books, probably a wet dream to a bookworm like his Ace. Yet, he really found the dreamy expression a bit worrisome there. It looked as if it wouldn't be easy to enter into a competition with those books. She cradled the book even closer, holding it up higher. Hmm, she wouldn't… oh yeah, she would. Smirking, he approached her. He just couldn't let this opportunity to tease her pass.

"I'm sorry, excuse me," he said, drawing their attention to him, loving the way Rory did a little frown upon seeing him. Probably hadn't expected to run into him here of all places. "Did I just see you smell that book?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, turning laughing eyes onto Rory.

With an adorable mixture of annoyance and embarrassment, Rory avoided his eyes. "Hey, Logan," she unenthusiastically greeted him and put the book down onto the top of the shelves.

Logan smiled, still keeping his eyes on Rory. "Hey, Ace," he greeted back and reluctantly looked at the girl beside her. "Who's your friend?"

Grudgingly, Rory looked at him and Anna. "Oh, Anna, this is Logan. Logan, this is Anna. She's from my high school. I'm showing her around campus," she introduced them.

"Hi!" Anna cheerfully greeted him.

Turning on his charm again, Logan smiled at her. "High school? Now, I would have sworn you were a college girl!" he said, watching with delight how Rory's frown deepened. Nope, she didn't like him flirting with her protégée. He wondered if that just was so with Anna or if it was flirting in general. He hoped it was the latter. He barely expressed anything as the girl giggled and beamed at him. "So…" he addressed Anna again. "Is she showing you a good time?"

"I'm showing her everything _important_," Rory pointed out, annoyed.

"Mmm, good," Logan said knowingly and got an idea. "Make sure she takes you to the pub. Local place, everyone goes there," he told Anna.

"I'm not taking her to the pub!" Rory protested and threw him a warning glare.

"Oh, please?" Anna begged. "The pub sounds fun," she added, looking at Logan for confirmation.

Good girl, Logan praised her silently. He trusted her that she wouldn't stop pestering Rory until she'd agree to take her to the pub tonight. There were non-alcoholic drinks served there after all. Though who knew if Rory was aware of that? He sure hadn't seen her there yet. He looked at her. "You don't have to drink, they do have coffee," he assured her, just to be on the safe side. She'd never go if she thought that one could only get booze there. "It's a cool scene, make her take you," he once again reminded Anna. She looked as if she wanted a wild time and though he agreed with Rory that this girl shouldn't be introduced to the parties around campus, he did want her to get Rory to go out, preferably to a place he would be. And he would be at the pub tonight. He looked back to Rory and smiled. "Bring a book to sniff!" he teased her, earning himself a death glare.

"What are you doing in a library anyhow?" Rory wanted to know, irritated, took the book she had sniffed and pushed it angrily back into its place.

Ah, he had already wondered when she'd came around to comment on his presence here. He smirked at her. "Got lost. Don't tell anyone I was here, ruin my rep." He glanced at Anna. "Anna, it's been a pleasure." For a last time, he looked at Rory. "See you, Ace," he promised and turned away from them to go back to the chair and retrieved his bag, shouldering it once again. Before he left he sneaked a glance back at Rory and Anna and had to suppress a laugh as he saw Ace irately take the book she had pushed at Anna back and re-shelved it. Then she ushered Anna away.

His spirits flying high, Logan left to go back to his room. Now he just needed to convince Finn and Colin to come to the pub with him tonight. Shouldn't be that hard. Probably, they would have ended up there anyway.

* * *

"Oh come on guys, hurry up a little!" Logan urged his friends as they were on the way over to the pub.

No, it hadn't been difficult to get them to come with him to the pub. Problem was that he couldn't get them to leave for it. It had taken alone one hour to get Finn out of the bathroom! Logan had no idea what Finn had done in there for an hour straight – and he was pretty sure that he didn't want to know. Colin whereas had absolutely refused to leave before he hadn't finished watching some show – one Logan knew that Colin had seen the episode already a few times as it had been a rerun of _Baywatch_. And every guy with blood in his veins had watched Baywatch at one point or another. Ugh. Really, if he didn't know it he'd get the idea that his two best friends weren't guys but girls!

Of course he could have left alone for the pub, but if Rory was already there she might have gotten the idea that he had come to meet her there, hoping that Anna had talked her into a visit of the pub. It may be the truth, but that didn't mean he wanted Rory to know that. Ace probably thought that he spent most of his nights in the pub anyway and that too wasn't far from the truth. He wasn't there every night, but he and his friends definitely were regulars – heck, Finn actually had a key for the place since their first year so they didn't have to leave at closing time if they didn't want to. Anyway, Logan saw no reason to correct Rory's opinion and it would look more natural if he showed up with his two side buddies. Besides, there was a chance that Rory wasn't there and then it would be really boring until his friends arrived.

Still, he had been five minutes away from going out alone anyway as Colin and Finn finally emerged from their grooming and couch slouching and they _finally_ were on the way to the pub. What worried Logan was that it was almost ten pm. Usually far from being late, quite the contrary in the pub actually, even on a Monday, but this was Rory. The studious girl he never saw anywhere fun and, even worse, she was taking care of a sixteen year old girl right now and he wouldn't put it past her to insist on being at home at ten. Oh yeah, that would be just like her. Right. He increased his pace.

"Uh, care to tell me why you've been such an impatient spoilsport this fine night?" Finn asked with a frown. "Or explain why we're practically running right now? You know, the booze hardly will run out until we arrive there."

Finally, they had reached the pub and Logan, not bothering to give Finn any answers, hurried inside where he stopped to let his eyes wander over the crowd. Damn. No Ace. Had he missed her after all? Damn it, he should have come sooner, not waiting for the two idiots! Or had she been firm enough after all and not let herself be talked into bringing Anna here? Grrr, really, did that girl _never_ allow herself some fun?

"Who are you looking for?" Colin curiously asked and took himself a look around, undoubtedly to try to spot who Logan was looking for.

"No one," Logan muttered, feeling his mood taking a serious downward spiral. He really had counted on Rory being here.

Behind him, Finn suddenly broke out in a laugh and hung himself between his friends. "Ah, I think that would be our lovely Reporter Girl there at ten o'clock," Finn answered Colin's question and pointed into said direction.

What? Quickly, Logan looked to ten o'clock and sure enough, there was Rory, leaning at the bar, waiting to order. He had overlooked her because two burly guys had hid her, but now the view to her was free. And what a view it was.

Finn gave a low whistle. "Hot," he commented, appreciating.

Oh yeah, that was one word to describe her in her short skirt in camouflage style and the long, long naked legs that ended in black boots. She wore too much on her upper body in Logan's opinion, with her jacket and scarf, but it didn't diminish her sexiness. Her beauty was sizzling and if that was how she went out casually then it was a shame that she did that so seldom and definitely something Logan had to rectify.

"What is she doing here? And on a Monday?" Colin asked puzzled and looked at Logan, whose eyes were still glued to Rory. "Did you invite her?"

"Yeah, mate, how'd you make her come here? And why didn't you say so earlier? We should have been here sooner! Can't let a beauty as our girl there alone with all those bad men here," Finn too looked at Logan.

"I wasn't sure she'd come. That high school kid she had mentioned Friday is here and Ace's showing her around. I run into them in the library and I may have planted the idea into Anna's head. Anna's the kid and I just trusted her to beg Ace persistently that she'd give in." The memory made him smirking and he tore his eyes away from the sweet vision to grin at his friends. "Get this: When I met them, Ace was cradling some old book to her and sniffed the book! No shit! Can you believe that?"

"Absolutely. That actually explains a lot. Poor girl: coffee junkie and sniffing books," Finn chuckled. "We really need to help her."

"Looks like you have competition there," Colin grinned, but suddenly, he frowned. "Unlike that loser there."

"What?" Logan asked and quickly looked back. Oh! Rory, balancing three cappuccinos, had just reached a table where Anna sat – and Marty, who sprang up to help her. A little late. She would have needed help bringing the cups over right from the beginning. What was that guy doing here anyway? Shouldn't he bartending somewhere? It was Monday. Surely, some guy threw a party somewhere?

"We _should_ have been here sooner," Finn commented darkly.

Colin's frown deepened while he took a closer look at Marty. "That guy looks familiar… do we know him?"

"It's Marty," Logan said. "Bartender at some of our parties. Makes a kick ass margarita."

"Ah…" Colin said. "Wait… that's the guy she was with at that supposedly first time we've met her?"

"The one and only," Logan confirmed darkly, watching how the three of them talked and enjoyed themselves at their table. He didn't miss the way Marty looked at his Ace. That guy definitely wanted something from her. Hell, from the looks of it, that guy was hopeless in love.

Fuck.

"Well, come on. What are we waiting here for?" Finn said, a determined look on his face and marched off into the direction of Rory's table.

Logan and Colin exchanged a worried look and hurried after him. It was seldom good when Finn got that look.

Rory, her back to them, had no idea of the danger that neared her in form of Finn and was so surprised when Finn _accidentally_ staggered into her chair. Plastering his dopey, clearly intoxicated grin onto his face he looked down at her. "Ups… sorry there, beautiful," he drawled and then got a small frown. "Do I know you?"

With a frown, Ace looked up to Finn and then her eyes wandered past him to his two friends behind him. Her eyes fixed onto Logan's. "Guys," she greeted them coldly, apprehensive, before her eyes darted across the table to Marty, who looked anything but happy upon the intrusion.

'Well, tough luck, buddy', Logan thought with satisfaction and shrugged out of his jacket. "Hey, Ace," he greeted her and looked at Anna with a smile. "So I see you managed to get her to bring you here. Did I promise too much?" he asked, ensuring that Marty knew that he had already met Anna and Rory and that _he_ had made sure that Rory would be here this evening.

Anna happily nodded, beaming at him. "Hi, Logan! This place is sooo cool! All these people! And two boys already invited me over to a party, though Rory doesn't want to go there… hey, perhaps you can come with me?" she asked hopefully.

Logan glanced at Rory and shook his head. "Ah, I don't think so, Anna. But you won't miss much. There never are good parties on campus on a Monday," he answered before Ace could say anything.

Still frowning, Rory nodded and waved at him. "See?" she asked.

"Unless we throw it, of course," Finn chirped in.

"Finn!" Rory warned in a low voice, making Finn look appropriately chastised.

"Won't you introduce us to your lovely friend here?" Colin asked, pulling a chair over and sat down between Rory and Marty.

Rory looked as if she was about to protest, but then she made the introductions with a sigh. "This is Anna, from Chilton. Anna, these are Colin and Finn," she said, pointing to the person in question before giving the guys a warning glare. "And you know Marty, of course."

"Do…" Colin started to say and Logan quickly punched him from behind. Ace would go up like a rocket if Colin showed his snobbishness towards her friend again.

"Duh, of course we know him. How's it going, Marty?" Logan pleasantly greeted the guy.

"Fine," muttered Marty.

Finn, having pulled a chair, wriggled himself between Marty and Anna. "Bet you are! Party season just started after all," he said to Marty with a grin and then looked up at Logan. "Hey mate, as you're already standing, why don't you go get us a round?" He looked at Rory who was just downing her cappuccino as if she was in serious need of it and put an arm around Anna. "And of course another round for our friends here, right cutie pie?" Anna giggled and nodded eagerly.

"I don't…"

"Be right back," Logan said with a nod, giving Ace no chance to finish her protest and went over to the bar.

He wasn't surprised in the slightest when Rory appeared beside him only a few seconds later. "Logan, for heaven's sake…"

"Relax, Ace, I wouldn't dream of giving alcohol to a minor," he calmed down Rory and flashed her an innocent smile.

"Hey, Huntz, the usual?" the bartender asked.

Logan turned to him and nodded. "Yes please, Rick. Plus a cappuccino, a Sheridan and," he interrupted himself and looked at Rory. "What would Marty want?"

Confused, she shook her head. "We usually drink cappuccino. What's a Sheridan?" she asked suspiciously.

Logan looked back to Rick and rolled his eyes that made Rick grin. "Hmm, let's make that a beer." He was determined to make sure that Marty needed something stronger tonight and a beer was pretty harmless.

"Will do, Huntz. Just a moment," Rick nodded and went off to get Logan's order ready.

"A beer? I don't think that Marty's going to like that. He's not the drinking type, you know," Rory protested with a frown and a pointed look.

Unlike him. Logan had heard the criticism loud and clear – not that it meant much to him. "Ace, Marty's a bartender. A good one. And trust me when I tell you that a bartender can't make good drinks if he doesn't know how they're supposed to taste. A beer will be nothing to him." He gave her a moment to digest his words before he picked up his reasoning again. "And you don't honestly think that Marty is drinking cappuccino when he's out with the guys?"

Strike! Ace sure hadn't anything to say to that.

"And now that we guys have joined you he doesn't need to pretend anymore that cappuccino is the best thing you can get in a bar," Logan added.

Defensively, Rory crossed her arms in front of her. "He likes cappuccino. And he doesn't have to pretend anything. He can drink whatever he wants."

Really, how could a smart girl as her be so naive? "Exactly," Logan said patiently. "And I assure you if he doesn't want his beer I personally will bring him something else."

Rick came back with their drinks. He nodded at their table. "Don't worry, Huntz, I'll bring it over," he said, holding up the full tray.

"Thanks, Rick. Put it on the tab, will you?" Logan said and turned to go back to their table.

Briefly touching Rory at the small of her back, he steered her back to their table. On the way he grabbed himself a chair as well and sat down between Rory and Anna, courtesy of his friends the only free spot left, just as Rick arrived with the drinks for them. He put the tray on the table, exchanged a complicated handshake with Finn and hurried back behind his bar to take care of his other customers. Logan reached forward to serve the others. He pushed the three empty glasses with ice to Finn, along with the bottle of scotch so Finn could pour them their drinks.

"Anna." With a smile he took the steaming cup of cappuccino and put it in front of Anna.

"Thanks, Logan!" she exclaimed and immediately took a careful slip. Logan wondered if it hadn't been hard to be always so cheerful and bouncy.

"Marty, a beer okay?" he asked, holding out the bottle to Marty.

Marty looked with longing at the bottle in Logan's hand and then shot a glance at Rory, but she made an impassive face. "Sure. Thanks," Marty uncomfortably said and slowly took the beer – to take a long swallow.

"No problem," Logan grinned and turned to Rory, not bothering to hide his triumphant expression. "And that leaves the Sheridan for you," he told her smugly, handing her the glass.

She looked at the brown, creamlike liquid in it, perhaps two fingers, with the ice cubes swirling in it, and raised an eyebrow. "That's alcohol. I don't drink alcohol on a Monday – or any other school day."

Logan sighed. Of course she had to make trouble. Of course she didn't drink alcohol on a school day. "Come on Ace, try it. It's hardly alcoholic at all, only has enough to give it a richer taste," he urged her.

"He's right, Rory. It's like Bailey's. You girls like Bailey's because it's not real alcohol, right?" Colin joined in.

"The difference is that the Sheridan is actually good, unlike Bailey's. Wouldn't even give a baby a buzz," Finn commented. "What?" he asked when the round looked at him strangely and then shrugged. "Not that I'd feed a Sheridan bottle to a baby. What a waste that would be."

"Still, that may be, but…" Rory still was stubborn.

"You should try it, Rory. It's a mixture of coffee and vanilla and really hardly alcoholic at all. You won't notice it," Marty said and took another sip of is beer, joining Logan and his friends in their tries of convincing Rory, to everyone's surprise.

Rory looked at him for a long moment before she finally sighed. "Fine!" she said and took the glass. Under everyone's rapt eyes she took a small sip of the drink, tasting it. Surprise washed over her face and her eyes widened a bit. She took another sip. "That's really good," she muttered and looked up to see the guys smiling at her. "Actually, it's fantastic. You said it's coffee and vanilla? Why don't I know it? Why doesn't Mom know it?"

"It's not a very well known drink, at least not here, so you only get it in few places. We're just lucky that Rick here happens to have a real well stocked bar – and is a big fan of it ever since he first tasted it over in Spain," Finn explained.

"Well, I now know what will be Mom's next birthday present. A box of this!" Rory said with a smile and then looked at Logan. "Thanks," she said, a lot grungier again.

Logan didn't mind – for that he was too happy that Ace had liked her drink. Perhaps all hope wasn't lost for that girl. She'd have trouble getting that box but Logan would only be more than happy to help her get it and that prospect even made him forget that she had only let herself be convinced to taste it in the first place by Marty.

"Can I have one of these as well then?" Anna asked hopefully.

"No!" Rory immediately refused, looking warningly at her young protégée.

"No, that's really not the drink for you, cutie pie," Finn helped. "And I'm the expert, believe me."

"Oh well," Anna sighed, but immediately perked up again. "I can't believe how cool college is! No uniforms! Eating what you want! Drinking what you want! Going out on a Monday! No parents to dictate your life! And all the cute guys around and all being soooo nice! Oh, I can't wait 'til I am finally in college!"

Ace sighed. "It's not just party you know," she tried to tell the girl.

Finn gasped. "What are you telling her here? Of course it's just one big party! Why else would we all be here?"

"Duh, I don't know, to study? Get good grades so we can get, at one time, a good job that interests us and secures us a good life?" Rory asked, wrinkling her nose.

Anna giggled. "Perhaps, but when else should we party then? After college it's marriage or some boring family business. And before, there are always the parents. Oh… I love college! Did I say that I can't wait to get here?"

Rory rolled her eyes in exasperation, but Logan looked thoughtfully at Anna. She sure knew more about reality than Rory. At least their reality.

"I forgot to ask, what's your family name Anna?" Colin asked.

"Fairchild. Anna Fairchild," Anna answered, taking a big gulp of her cappuccino.

"As in Fairchild Associates?" Colin clarified.

Anna shrugged. "Guess so. Daddy's working in Wall Street."

Oh yeah, she knew exactly how their world worked, Logan thought with a sympathetic sigh. No wonder that girl was so eager-happy to be here. He hadn't been any different when he got sent on college tour, not that there ever had been any choice for him other than Yale.

"You know her?" Rory asked Colin.

Finn shook his head. "No, just the parents probably. Part of the circle."

"Ohhhh, look Rory, there are those guys from before! I think he winked at me. Do you think he winked at me?" Anna said, pointing to two guys at the bar, looking over to them.

Logan looked at them and raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess: the party guys?"

Rory nodded with a sigh and sent the boys a warning glare. Quickly, they turned away. "Freshmen…" she commented exasperated.

"Rory!" Anna protested.

"Anna," Rory gave back in the same exact tone. "Come on, finish your coffee."

Anna obediently took another sip. "I love cappuccino! Look at me! Here I'm sitting in a pub, late in the evening, on a Monday, drinking cappuccino with four cute guys and all grown up! It's so great! So cool! To think that I can have that every day once I'm here! College is great! It rocks!!" she exclaimed happily, apparently getting cheerier by the minute.

Chuckling, Logan leaned in to Rory. "What's she on, Ace? You sure those book smells were good for her?" he asked with a smirk.

Rory glared at him but made a face. "Three Red Bulls and four cappuccinos. Think it's been too much?" she remarked sarcastically, reached for her Sheridan, finished it and stood up. "Ok, Anna, I think it's time to go home now."

"Already?" Anna whined. "It's still early!"

"It's half past ten and yeah, we need to go now. Don't forget that we have class tomorrow, so take a last gulp, get your things and say bye-bye to the cute guys," Rory firmly told the girl. Sighing, Anna did as she was told. Rory turned to the boys. "Thanks for the drinks, Logan."

Logan waved it away.

"Yeah, thank you, Logan! Bye, Logan! Bye, Colin! Bye, Finn! Bye, Marty! Bye, bye!" Anna chirped, waving at each 'bye', making it hard for the boys to hold back their laughter.

Shaking her head, Rory put her hands on her shoulders and steered her towards the door. "See you, guys!" she called over her shoulder.

Marty downed his beer and hastily grabbed his jacket. "I should go as well. Uh… thanks for the beer," he uncomfortably said as he jumped up. "Wait up, Rory, I'm coming with you!" he called and, with a last glance at Logan, hurried after the girls.

"He's got it bad for our girl," Finn commented dryly and took a sip. "Luckily for you, mate, she's not interested in that guy, though I doubt he'll be as pleased about it as you, once he realizes the truth."

Logan chose to say nothing and simply took a long sip of his scotch. He agreed at one point with Finn though: He didn't think that Rory was on the verge of falling in love with Marty either. Thank God. That didn't mean though that he had to like that this bartender was weaseling around his Ace.

"That may be true, but he and Logan here weren't the only ones who made gooey eyes at Rory," Colin pointed out.

"I didn't make gooey eyes at her!" Logan protested. Now that really went too far. Yeah, he had been once again enticed by his Ace, but nothing more. He didn't do gooey.

While Finn snorted, Colin simply ignored him and continued. "I've seen at least five guys check her out. I know for a fact that some of the guys at the sub-party are only waiting for her to join the scene again and contrary to the guys here, they know that she's single right now. And I'm sure that there are more guys like this Marty type here that are close to Rory and are only waiting for their chance."

"Perhaps, but that doesn't mean that Ace's going to go out with them. I think she wants to concentrate on her studies now," Logan reasoned. God, he hoped that was true. A study freak like her would think like that, right?

"For now. Until that guy comes along that sweeps her off her feet and her studies will be forgotten," Finn dryly said and frowned. "Well, at least we'll make her see that there's room for love as well in her life," he corrected himself with a shrug.

Next thing Logan knew was that two pair of eyes turned onto him. Uncomfortably, Logan's legs twitched while he took another long sip.

"And if you're finally honest to yourself, then you will admit that you want to be that guy," Finn gently said.

"Or would you like to see her in someone else's arms?" Colin sarcastically asked.

Sometimes, best friends really could be a pain in the ass. Logan said nothing again and gave himself a refill.

Groaning, Finn let his head fall onto the table and thumped it, muttering things under his breath Logan pretended not to hear.

Sympathetically, Colin patted Finn's shoulder and sighed. "At least give those guys out there a little reminder that she's not as free as some of them think. Give them a little warning that you were here first!" he half begged, half ordered. "Idiot," he muttered after a moment when Logan showed no reaction, shaking his head.

Logan's legs stilled and he looked thoughtfully away. He wasn't as oblivious to the sharks swimming around as his friends maybe thought. Of course he had seen the way other guys looked at Ace. And he wasn't as reluctant to put a clear claim on her as Colin and Finn thought. Because Colin was dead right that he didn't want to see Ace with someone else. But Logan kind of liked living and being able to walk around with all body parts intact and that would drastically change the second Ace got wind of the claim. Sure, it would be guy code – but guys wouldn't be guys if they didn't understand a subtle claim. It had to be something bigger. Problem was that Ace was too smart to not see big…

Hmm…

Okay, so if it couldn't be subtle, nor big… how about mega-sized? So big that Rory would only be able to see the trees – whereas all the guys got one very clear message. Hmm, that may actually work. But he would have to make sure that Ace couldn't see behind the obvious. For not a single moment she could believe that it was anything else but some sort of a prank or…

A prank.

Good God he was stupid! Of course! A prank! It was perfect. And the beauty of it: he'd get two strikes in one. First, a claim would be laid over Rory and every single guy here at Yale would know that she was pegged. And second, he'd get to show Ace that college life was about much more than just studying. An idea sprang up in his mind, growing rapidly. A grin started on his face. Oh, she would be furious about him, no doubt, so furious that she'd never see the message he sent out with the prank. Besides, as he had established already at their second encounter: angry worked for her.

"Finn, stop banging your head and look up," Colin urged on the Australian.

"Huh?" Finn asked and looked up. He took in the sight of Logan, most of all his eyes and the grin, and slowly began to smile as well. "Ohhhh!"

Slowly, Logan fixed his eyes onto his friends. "Finn, you still have that British police uniform?" he asked, his eyes shining in a dangerous gleam.

For a moment, Finn stared at him, then suddenly, he jumped up, right onto his chair, his arms flailing heavenwards. "Wooooohooooooo!!"

"Finn, get down!" Colin hissed and tugged at Finn's pants. Finn came down, grinning from ear to ear and downed his drink. Shaking his head, Colin looked back to Logan, a grin starting on his face as well though. "Let's hear it, Huntzberger."

Finn nodded eagerly. "Oh yeah, let's hear it! And it better be good!"

"Oh, it is good," Logan assured him. Smiling, he sat forward and started to let his friends in on his idea. When he was finished, all three of them sported a grin the size of Eurasia.

* * *

"Why do I have to be the kicked-out? Why can't Finn be the kicked-out?" Colin whined for perhaps the hundredth time.

"Who'd kick out a catch like me?" Finn asked.

Logan sighed. "Because the uniform's too big for you," he explained patiently once again, not bothering to look at him though. Through the small window at the door he looked into the classroom of Professor Bell. Rory should be here, but he wanted to make sure she really was here before they started with the show. Like expected though, he spotted her, with Anna beside her, listening attentively to her Philosophy professor. He chuckled when he saw her elbowing Anna at that moment. Contrary to his Ace, Anna seemed to be quite bored by the class, from the way her eyes fell closed again and again. On the other hand, with four cappuccinos and Red Bulls in her system, who knew how much sleep she managed to get.

Well, the class was about to get a lot more interesting and he was sure that Anna wouldn't feel sleepy anymore when their little show was over.

Still grinning, he turned to his friends and nodded eagerly. "Ready?"

"A police officer's always ready!" Finn answered with a matching grin, straightening his uniform.

"Ugh, please Finn. The Aussie accent's bad enough. Don't try to make it English on top of that," Colin muttered, glaring at him.

"But I'm a British police officer. They don't speak with an Australian accent!" Finn protested.

"Come on you two! A prank is waiting for us!" Logan intervened, knowing only too well that those two could argue until the class was over.

"Don't look at me! Colin here is stalling!" Finn once again protested, pointing at Colin.

"I'm not stalling!"

"Yes you are," Finn nodded.

"No! I'm just…"

"Colin! Would you please go in there and make one of your patented scenes?" Logan asked, exasperated. "And don't forget to leave the door open!"

"All right, all right. But next time _you_ will be the one kicked out!" Colin sighed and, not bothering to wait for an answer, threw open the door and burst right into the middle of the professor's lecture. With a curse, Logan quickly dove for cover, dragging Finn with him.

"I'm right in the middle of class young man!" They could hear Professor Bell tell Colin, clearly annoyed by the interruption.

"I know, I'm sorry," Colin absentmindedly said. "Rory! You can't just walk out like that. Not after everything we've been through! You just left! I was still in bed, I mean, what is that all about?!" he ranted.

"Colin's such a drama queen," Finn said softly, barely able to keep his laughter down.

Logan nodded, himself having a hard time without giving himself away. It was perfect. Well almost, if he could only see Ace's expression right now. It had to be priceless!

"Okay, you need to do this later," Professor Bell tried to tell Colin.

"I can't do this later!" Colin's voice angrily answered him. "Rory, I love you! I love you damn it! How many times do I have to tell you? God, just talk to me!" he then pleaded, no doubt to Rory, his voice getting more desperate by the second.

When Finn gave him a little shove, Logan nodded and pushed away from the wall. This was his cue.

The professor was still trying to get control over the situation. "Okay out! Right now, just get…"

At that moment, Logan stormed into the classroom as well. "Colin! What are you doing man?!" he called out, moving quickly towards Colin who stood in the row beside Rory, who, as Logan noted with delight, was looking shocked at Logan, clearly confused by what was going on. He had been right: her facial expression _was_ priceless!

"Get the hell out of here!" Colin furiously yelled at him, poking his right finger at him.

"She's with me now, I told you that!" Logan angrily shot back at Colin and looked at Rory, whose wide eyes started to narrow. "Let it go!" he added, having a hard time not to grin at Rory's baffled face. Quickly, he glared back at Colin.

"I will not let it go!" Colin protested.

"She doesn't love you, Rory," Logan risked a glance at her. Ah, there were those blazing blue eyes of her again! "Tell him you don't love him!" he asked her demandingly. Of course she did say nothing like that. Actually, she looked pretty much speechless.

"Everything was fine until _you_ came along!" Colin accused him frantically, poking his finger again at Logan.

Logan narrowed his eyes to look darkly at Colin. "Don't blame me 'cause you couldn't keep her!" he warned in a low voice.

"I swear to God, I'm going to kill you!" Colin wrathfully promised.

Logan sneered, deepening his frown. "Oh, I'd love to see you try," he worried, taunted Colin.

That was the cue for act number three. Colin propelled himself against Logan, making him stagger backwards while they started to wrestle. After a moment of struggling, Logan threw Colin onto the floor, following him to try to knock him out, but Colin managed to get up and punched Logan into the stomach. Of course they only acted the whole fight, but that didn't mean that they didn't feel any of the punches and strikes. Dimly, Logan was aware that the professor was yelling at them but he had to concentrate on the fake fight earnestly to be able to understand him. They staggered towards the desk and Logan grabbed Colin and threw him over the desk. Colin rolled himself over it and let himself fall onto the floor on the other side. Quickly, Logan jumped over the desk after him and went down to continue their fight.

Damn it, where was Finn?! They couldn't keep this up much longer!

At that moment, the shrill sound of a whistle reverberated throughout the room. Relieved, Logan, hidden by the desk now, let go of Colin and grinned at him.

"All right, that's enough, break it up you two!" Finn's terrible accent sounded and a moment later, Finn appeared at their side and reached down to pull them up at their collars, giving Logan the opportunity to take another look at Rory. Uh oh, there sat one very angry girl, Logan thought as he felt her eyes boring holes into him. "Rory Gilmore, you should be ashamed of yourself! Toying with these boys like this," Finn addressed her and Logan was actually relieved to see the blazing eyes narrow on Finn now. "They used to have pride," Finn said, looking at Colin, probably relieved to escape those deadly eyes for a moment as well. "They used to have dignity," Finn continued, looking at Logan. His grip on Logan's collar tightening, he braced himself and looked back to Rory. "They used to have balls." The blue eyes turned dangerously icy. Finn turned them all away to drag them over to the door, giving them a short break from the burning glare. At the door, he turned them to face the class again, though Logan could only see the furious blue eyes that tried to kill all three of them with mere looks. Thank God looks couldn't kill! "Damn it Gilmore, give 'em back their balls!" Finn demanded from Rory and quickly ushered all three of them out of the classroom.

Outside, they looked at each other for a moment. Behind them, the students started to applaud, cheering up with laughter. Slowly, the boys started to grin. As one, they turned back to the door and Finn gave Colin a shove to go back inside. As soon as Colin appeared, the whistles and applause got louder. Finn followed him and Logan saw him aiming with his arms at Rory. He had balls, Logan had to give him that, he thought and went in after his friends, bowing deeply, the adrenaline still rushing through his veins and he let himself ride on it. Rory had no idea what she missed by always being the good little student. As he came up he caught another glance at her furious and annoyed face and inwardly winced. Yeah, angry sure suited her – but he wasn't too sure anymore if he'll survive her wrath this time.

Well, the expression on her face had been worth it, he thought and with a last look at her as he left the classroom, Finn and Colin coming after him. This time they didn't stop outside the classroom but quickly went towards the exit. They made it outside before they broke down laughing.

"God, have you seen Bell's face? He was so helpless when you two started to fight!" gasped Finn.

Colin nodded with another burst of laughter. "It really was dopey. But you should have seen Rory when I came in and went to her! She had no idea what was going on! I've never seen anyone so startled and confused! It really was too good to be true!"

Logan took a few deep breaths in order to try to calm down and give his hurting sides a relief. "Yeah, her expression sure was priceless. But I may have underestimated how angry she'd get," he sighed, remembering the blazing daggers thrown at them by his Ace.

Finn laughed and slapped him on the back. "Mate, she's going to take your balls, rip them off and then put them into a blender to mush them into porridge that she'll feed to the pigs."

Involuntarily, Logan's hand moved to the body parts in question and winced at the lively image that Finn's words conjured up.

"No doubt. But in your place I'd be a bit more worried about your own balls, Finn. From the looks of it she'll have all our hides," Colin said worriedly.

Finn stared at him with wide eyes. "Are you crazy? I'm going to get the hell out of here! And when she nails me down anyway I'll have no qualms whatsoever to tell her that this had been all Logan's idea and that he blackmailed me into participating." He looked at Logan. "I love you, mate, you know that, but I love my balls more."

"Hmm, Paris is supposed to be good this time of year," Colin suggested.

Logan shook his head. "Come on, what can she do? She'll yell at us, refuse to talk to us, ignore us for a while. We're not going to run like scared chickens!"

"When my balls are at stake I _am_ a scared chicken," Finn pointed out.

Ignoring him, Logan looked back to the building. Classes should be over any minute now. "We should get back to our dorms," he mentioned.

"I thought we aren't going to run?" Colin asked with a smirk.

"We aren't running. We're just going so Finn can change and we do need a shower after our fight. Nice punch there by the way," Logan corrected Colin and rubbed at his stomach.

Colin nodded and rubbed at his back. "Thanks. But you know, you could have warned me that you were going to throw me over that desk," he muttered darkly.

Logan shrugged. "Sorry, mate. Spur of the moment. Thought it would make a good finish for our fight."

"Please, you just wanted to impress your girl," Finn snorted. "And after today that bartender and every other guy on campus know that she's your girl."

At his words, Logan grinned and forgot about Rory's wrath and the small aches from his fight show. "Yeah, I think the message got across just loud and clear, didn't it?" he asked, not really realizing that he forgot to protest that Ace wasn't _his_ girl per se.

"It sure did," Colin nodded.

The bell rang and the boys exchanged a look. Right. They better make sure that they got the hell out of there. Still high on adrenaline, they started back to their dorms.

* * *

After they had changed, they had spent the day staying clear of any professors – or a certain blue-eyed reporter. They did mingle though. News about their stunt had traveled like a wildfire all over the campus and wherever Logan and his friends showed up, people stopped them to congratulate them or to ask questions. In short: they were the topic of the day and, for a few of them, even the heroes of the day, at least if one could believe the ones that approached them and those who had been in Bell's class as well.

They had stopped by the pub and were on their way back to their dorms to get themselves ready for the evening – well, as soon as they managed to decide on what they were going to do tonight - when Colin paled suddenly and grabbed Finn and Logan at the arms to pull them back into the shadow of a tree.

"What?" Finn asked.

Wordlessly, Colin pointed across the yard. Oh. There were Rory and Anna, entering the cafeteria.

"That was close. Thanks mate," Finn mentioned.

Logan looked at the building, thinking. This was ridiculous. Sure, Ace would be mad. But wouldn't it be better if they'd get the yelling behind them so they could start to enjoy the fun of it?

"You coming, Logan?" Colin asked, bringing Logan out of his thoughts and looking up. Colin and Finn had started to pick up their way to their dorms again.

Logan looked at them and then back to the cafeteria. He sighed. "I think I should go talk to her," he said.

They stared at him, unbelieving.

"Are you crazy?" Colin sputtered.

"You suicidal?" Finn asked at the same time.

Logan shook his head. "I can't hide from her forever anyway. Nor do I want to. So I figure it's for the best I get it over with." Nervously, he glanced at the building where Rory was right now. "Don't you think so too?" he asked, pushing his hands into his pockets.

Finn inclined his head to look crossly at him. "I think you should stay clear of her for a lot longer. Give her time to cool down. You go now to her, she'll skin you."

"I'm with Finn here, Logan," Colin agreed, nodding eagerly. "Give her some more time, at least until you made your last will and testament."

"Remember, I get the pin-up girl collection and your little black book," Finn reminded him immediately.

"No! I get the book!" Colin protested, glaring at Finn.

"What use would it be to you mate?" Finn asked with raised eyebrows.

"Come on!" Logan interrupted them. "I have two of them, so each of you can have one. Right now, though I could need a little back-up. Because I'm going in there to face the dragon."

Finn laughed. "Sorry, you're on your own – especially when we tell you to not go in there."

"Not with me," Colin too said, making a face. "Seriously, Logan. Let it be, at least for today."

Perhaps they were right. But Logan was pretty sure that the longer he waited, the worse it would get. He knew that he had some serious apologizing to do. Not that he was actually sorry about the prank. But everything in Logan told him that he'd never get on Rory's good side again if he didn't give her at least the opportunity to yell at him while he begged her for forgiveness.

"No. No, the sooner the better," he insisted and looked at his friends. "And you seriously won't give me back-up? You were part of it as well, you know?"

"But it was _your_ idea," Colin pointed out.

"And _your _girl that _you_ wanted to impress and claim at the same time. No buddy, that's one battle you have to fight for yourself," Finn elaborated and put an arm around Logan. "But be assured that we'll thoroughly mourn for you. Your funeral will be the funeral for the ages, we personally will make sure of that."

Logan shrugged Finn's arm off. "Thank you so much. Some friends you are," he sarcastically said and slowly started for the cafeteria.

"And don't forget to tell her that this had been all _your _idea when she rips off your balls!" Finn called after him.

"Yeah, tell her we're totally innocent here!" Colin added.

Logan glared back at them over his shoulders and picked up his pace. Such wonderful friends – what had he done to deserve such wonderful friends?

* * *

To be honest, the moment he entered the cafeteria and spotted Rory, looking anything but happy, his courage started to leave him. Perhaps Finn and Colin were right, perhaps he should wait until tomorrow. He looked at the scowl on her face and pushed his hands deep into his pockets. Okay, perhaps a couple of days. A week should be safe, shouldn't it? Oh, a month at the top. That surely would give her enough time to cool down and forget a little about it, at least enough for her to let him live – and to leave his balls alone, wouldn't it?

Probably. But it probably would also convince her that he really isn't worth the air he was breathing. And show her just what a coward he was. Not to mention that there was no use in laying a claim over her when he then wasn't around her anymore to keep it on and fight off other would-be-suitors. Right.

Slowly, he took a deep, deep breath and then forced his feet to go over to the girls, still unaware of his presence.

Well, no time like the present, Logan thought. "Hey, ladies," he greeted them.

Startled, Rory briefly looked up at him, her eyes two pools of smoldering rage, before she quickly looked away again, her left hand coming up to block Logan's view onto her face. And she turned slightly away from him, the perfect image of somebody giving someone the cold shoulder.

"Hi, Logan!"

Logan looked at Anna, a plate with ice cream and cereals in front of her, and he took it as a worrisome sign that Rory allowed her that at a little over five pm.

"How are we doing this fine evening?" he asked, not able to help the smile. She may be mad, but even she had to admit that it had been a good prank – hadn't she?

"We're doing great! You want to join us?" Anna cheerfully answered him, nodding to the free chair beside Rory.

Blessed child! "Sure," Logan said and took off his jacket to put it over the chair before he sat down. Sitting down was good, he wouldn't have to worry about shaking knees. Though in hindsight it perhaps would have been better to take the chair beside Anna – this way Ace was not awfully close in punching range for his whole body, especially though certain private parts. Okay, she probably wouldn't have a good aim from the side, but still… just to be careful, he gave his most delicate parts cover with his entwined hands. He glanced at Rory, who had yet to say a word – or even look at him again. "So… dull day, huh?" he asked, grabbing the bull at the horns.

"Not for me!" Anna laughed.

Still, Rory said nothing. Oh please, this was getting ridiculous! Looking closely at her, Logan decided to try to finally get Rory to talk to him. "Someone's quiet."

"Got nothing to say," Rory coldly said, without looking at him, the cold shoulder still clearly turned on him.

Oh yeah, she was very, very mad.

He looked at Anna for a moment. "Do you get the sense that she's mad at me?" he asked, his eyes returning to Ace. He wasn't feeling quite comfortable or _safe_ enough to let her out of his eyesight.

"Yep," Anna answered amused, without a doubt in her voice. Logan briefly wondered what she had heard Rory promising to do to him… but at that moment Rory finally moved and he turned all his attention back to the bubbling pot of fury beside him. Fiery daggers shot out at him in the seconds she glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes and she took a deep breath before she finally took down her hand and turned to Anna.

"Hey, Anna, why don't you head on over to the Fro-Yo social? You remember where it is, right?" she asked Anna.

"Yeah, but I just had three scoops of ice cream," Anna responded, pointing with the spoon at her plate.

"Kid, you're in college now okay? Now go get yourself some yogurt," Rory told her, almost ordered her actually.

All that time, Logan watched her carefully. He took it as a very, very bad sign for him that she sent Anna away. That meant whatever she planned to do with him would be X-rated.

"Are you going to come, Logan?" Anna's question brought him out of his dark visions of Rory taking him apart part by part – starting with his balls. "Aww, I'm not sure how well I'll be walking here in a minute Anna," he truthfully answered her, not having missed the look Rory had thrown him there for a moment, his first direct eye contact with Ace since he got here.

He could be glad if he was still able to crawl over to the health center.

"Oh… Okay, bye," Anna sympathetically said and got up, put on her coat and left. Logan looked longingly after her and finally braced himself and turned back to face the dragon, whose nostrils were fuming and with eyes that were filled with red hot rage. He watched her carefully to see if she would at least be the first to say something. No such luck though.

"That's not a good look," he observed when he couldn't stand the silence anymore, his head slightly coming forward, taking cover, without him really realizing it,

"I have no words," Rory snapped, heaving with her arms, her eyes thankfully turning heavenwards.

"It was just a joke!" Logan defensively reasoned.

Really, he could understand that she might be a bit furious, but she didn't have to throw such a tantrum!

"Oh no, wait, I thought of some!" Rory hissed and sent her glare back to eviscerate Logan. "Jerk! Ass!, arrogant, inconsiderate, mindless, frat boy, low life, butt-faced miscreant!!" she counted off in a growing fury, her eyes wandering around while she searched for names but unfortunately narrowing back onto his at the end of her rant.

In hindsight, silence wasn't so bad._ Butt-faced miscreant?_

He pulled one harmless joke and he was a butt-faced miscreant? "Butt-faced miscreant?" he repeated unbelieving, staring at Rory.

"_Why_ would you do something like that?!" Rory demanded to know, completely ignoring Logan's words.

Logan frowned. Okay, she was furious. And he was accustomed to hear names, not every girl was reasonable when he told her that he wasn't interested in a relationship and didn't want more – or got tired of her. Some cry, some plead, some take it and some get angry. But 'butt-faced miscreant'? That was new. Original, that he had to give her, but still way over the top! He had just made a joke for Heaven's sake! "I'm sorry, 'butt-faced miscreant'?" he asked again, still having trouble that she really called him a butt-faced miscreant.

Rory though was still not listening to him as she ranted, her arms wagging wildly around. "Here I am, trying to show Anna what college life is really like, and…"

"That _is_ what college life is really like!" Logan impatiently interrupted her, enforcing his words with a series of small nods.

Did she really think that college was all about studying and having no fun at all even a little bit? To live, to be wild? What else was college for but to enjoy the last opportunity for freedom?!

Rory snorted. "Maybe, your college life. Not mine. That was _my_ class Logan. That was my professor who decides _my_ grades," she pointed out, smoldering him with another glare. "And you made me look ridiculous to him!"

Oh, please! "No, I made _me_ look ridiculous to him," Logan protested.

"Oh, you don't think he thinks I was part of it?" she asked sarcastically.

Damn… that actually could really be the case. "I'll talk to him," Logan promised. "I'll tell him you were an innocent bystander." Yeah, that he'd do. He really didn't want Rory to get in trouble for this.

"The whole class was in a frenzy the entire time." Rory simply went over to the next point on her list, with a frown on her forehead. How long was that damn list? "We never got back to what we were talking about!"

"There's another class next week!" Logan pointed out, incredulous. She was mad that class didn't go on? What kind of a person is she who threw such a fit because of such a thing?

"Ugh, I know that classes and the paper and Yale in general mean nothing to you, but it means something to me. Professor Bell's course is only six weeks long, and you blew one of those weeks for me!" Rory raged, her arms never still until she pulled her sleeves over her hands and crossed them over her chest, accompanied with the glare that was still in place, annoyance and irritation very evident. "I won't get that week back!"

He couldn't believe what he was doing… but it was clear that he had some serious bucking up to do here. "Look, you want up close and personal time with Bell? My dad knows him," he told her sourly. How he'd get his father to get Bell to talk to Rory was beyond him, but if that was what it would take, fine. "He'll arrange…"

But Ace cut into his word. "Please stop talking," she softly told him, making Logan shut up immediately and look baffled at her. What did he do wrong now?

"I'm sorry you're so bent out of shape!" Logan apologized after a moment. "I didn't mean to upset you," he told her. Annoy her, yes… bring a little spunk into her life, yes… but never to make her this upset. He hadn't thought she'd go up like a rocket like that over this. It was just a joke!

"Anna thinks that Yale is just a big joke!" Rory whined, coming to the next point on her apparently never ending list.

What? Oh please! "If Anna thinks that Yale is a big joke after spending five minutes with you, then she was always going to think that Yale's just a big joke," Logan pointed out. "Relax."

But, all Rory did, was grunt. "You and me? Very different people. I have to go," she told him frostily and stood up.

Incredulous, Logan stared up at her. What exactly was she saying here? Did she just quit her – whatever with him? And where… "To the Fro-Yo social?" he asked dryly, remembering her earlier words to Anna.

"Yes, I have to go to the Fro-Yo social," Rory answered, annoyed and paused a moment in putting her scarf around her neck. And what an ugly scarf it was. "And yes, I do realize how incredibly stupid that just sounded. Excuse me," she finished in a huff and quickly left, leaving Logan behind to stare incredulously after her.

Un-fucking-believable!!

* * *

"Women!! The most unbelievable creatures ever!!" Logan roared, storming into Colin and Finn's dorm, and headed straight for the house bar, not looking right or left. He needed a drink like he never needed one in his entire life. "You know, I always thought that all those losers that said and even believed that are just not man enough to handle a woman. But you know what?! They're right. Dead right! In reality, all those men are poor, poor sorry bastards who know how it really works, but no one believes them." Furious, he tossed ice into his glass and then reached down to get the Jack Daniels. "But I'm healed, you can believe that! Yes, Sir, I know how it really is now as well and never again will I let some boobs with baby blue eyes deceive me!" He poured himself in, filling the glass so much that it almost spilled over. "Women are irritating, unreasonable, and impossible to understand living creatures and you have to be crazy to bother yourself with them!! And Rory Gilmore is the dark queen of them all!!" He took a long gulp, the strong alcohol burning in his throat, almost bringing tears to his eyes. "And I'm done with them! Oh, I'm so over with them. So she's mad, huh? So she can't understand a joke, because she's such a tight ass? Fine! See if I care!" He took another long gulp, the Daniels running much smoother down his throat now. "If she wants to be a bitch about it, fine! If she refuses to see the funny side of it, fine! It doesn't matter!" His third long swallow burnt his way down into his stomach. "So what if she thinks we're different? We are! While I am a reasonable, if sometimes a bit too easy going guy, she's an irrational something with one large stick up her ass! What do I care if she's finished with me?! _I_'m finished with her! Yeah, that I am! Finished with her, over and out, finito!" He wanted to take another gulp but to his sorrow, had to find out that his glass was empty. Furious, Logan smashed the glass against the next wall, noting with satisfaction how it burst into a million little shreds that slid down the wall.

Colin and Finn exchanged a long look.

"So I guess apologizing to Reporter Girl didn't go quite as well, huh?" Finn dryly asked.

Logan threw him a glare that made Ace's glares from before look harmless.

Finn held up his hands. "Hey, no need to eviscerate me! I'm one of the good guys remember? Of those reasonable, understandable persons you just described."

"What happened?" Colin quietly asked.

"What happened? She was mad, very furious, that was what happened. And while I understand that she's a bit angry about it, she reacted totally…"

"Irrational?" Finn finished.

"I mean, come on! She's mad that class didn't go on after the prank! Said I took her week away which she won't get back! And when I promised her to make it up by getting her together with Bell for a private heart to heart you know what she did?" Logan ranted, starting to pace. He had left the cafeteria in more or less a state of total stupor about his talk with Rory, but the fresh air had helped to clear up his head and with each step he had taken, his fury had grown and got fueled with every accusation she'd thrown at him and that he remembered. "She told me to shut up! Me! And then she gets up, declaring that we're… ugh! I need another drink!"

With a sigh, Finn got up and went over to the bar. "I think it's better if I'll make it this time. And, not that I have anything against you loosening up your emotions, but could you please restrain from smashing more of our glasses?"

"She declared what?" Colin asked curiously.

"Hell if I know! She was totally unreasonable! No one could understand her! No one but probably one of them!" Logan hissed, throwing up his arms.

"Women?" Finn clarified nonchalantly, pouring Logan another Jack Daniels, but making it a lot lighter than the last.

"Yes! Women! Insensible, unreasonable, crazy creatures, all of them!" Logan nodded.

"Uh, and what did she say exactly now?" Colin wanted to know.

Logan shrugged. "How could I? What was I thinking, oh wait, I'm an inconsiderate and mindless frat-boy, so of course I'm not thinking at all, let alone caring about anything, starting with Yale in general and stopping with her education in particular!"

"A mindless frat-boy?" Finn asked and came over to him, a grin on his face and the drink in his hand. "Cute," he commented and held out the drink.

With a warning glare at him, Logan took it. "Oh, it gets better! I'm also a butt-faced miscreant! Have you ever heard anything like that?! A butt-faced miscreant for simply wanting to spice her life up a little. But thank you very much, I'm healed from that nonsense now! She wants to kill herself with her studies and squeeze every ounce of fun out of her already boring life? Fine! See if I ever try to help her again!"

Finn laughed out loud, but quickly moved out of Logan's reach. "You've got to admit that she gets points for originality."

"But the top of it all was when she accused me that I was ruining Anna's opinion of Yale! As if anything could change her opinion that college is the best thing in life! Well, it is! But of course Miss Tight Ass can't see it, she thinks that it's the most serious and important part of your life! She has no idea how reality looks like, a reality in which you get pressured into doing what your family wants you to do right from the minute you get planned! She wants to be a reporter and no one tells her that that's impossible, that she has to take over the family business one day and so forces her to major in Business and Management!" With one long, long swallow he emptied his glass and barely suppressed the urge to send it against the wall again. "She hadn't been told since she was able to understand that she had to go to Yale one day to prepare herself for the big responsibility to make sure that the family name stays what it is! She won't be forced into marrying some trophy girl one day for the single purpose of producing the next heir, and once he's there, you'll never see the inside of your own bedroom again. But what does it matter, you'll have your concubines and no one thinks anything wrong about that as long as you keep it discreet! No, she has no idea, so why should she care that college really is about a lot more than studying and getting good grades?"

"Whoa, buddy, calm down!" Finn interrupted his rant and slowly came closer to him again.

Blinking, Logan stared at him, dawning on him what he had just said. Groaning, Logan ran his hands through his hair and let himself fall down onto the couch beside Colin. Closing his eyes, he buried his head into his hands, elbows on his knees. What the hell had just happened?

"Logan?" Colin asked carefully and Logan could feel his hand squeezing his shoulder gently.

Logan shook his head, not yet ready to talk again. He feared too much what would come out of his mouth if he opened it.

"Here, take another drink," Finn's voice said from in front of him and Logan felt something cold against his hands.

He looked up, right into Finn's sympathetic and understanding eyes and slowly took the glass, not taking a sip from it though.

"The way I see it you can be happy that you got out of it alive and, judging from your untouched clothes, also with all body parts still intact," Finn said, throwing himself into the next big chair.

Again, Logan looked at him, surprised this time.

"Yeah, you're one lucky guy for that. I already wrote my condolences to Mitchum and Shira," Colin nodded. "Oh well, I'll just keep it for the next time."

Incredulous, Logan turned his eyes from Finn to Colin.

"And you know, I think that the fact that you still live and are whole means that your girl will sooner or later calm down and forgive you, seeing the fun in it," Finn mused with a grin.

"You'll have her in your bed in no time!" Colin nodded.

Logan stared at his friends. Okay, now they've gone completely crazy! Hadn't they heard a word he had said? "She's. Not. My. Girl!" he very slowly spelled it out. Perhaps they would finally understand him then.

"Oh, yeah? And why did you put a claim on her today, then?" Colin asked with a smirk, raising his eyebrows.

"That was before I realized that she'll never fit into my world, just as I thought right from the beginning. So I'm un-claiming her. Tell your friends that they can have her. I wish them good luck. God knows they'll need it." Logan frowned. "Actually, I'll go personally to Marty and tell him that she's all his. Poor bastard. It's his downfall. Not my problem anymore though." He nodded. "But first I'll go change and then I'm going out and find myself some nice girl, one that wants a bit fun in her life. I'll fuck her brains out and then, tomorrow evening, I go out again and find myself another mindless blonde to have a little fun with. You want to come along?"

"I thought you're through with women?" Finn asked with barely suppressed laughter.

"I am! With incomprehensible, irritating women as Ace. I am so through with them, 'cause they sure as hell aren't worth the trouble they bring along with them!" Logan retorted, quickly emptying his glass and standing up. "But I had no problem at all with the other sex before I got myself distracted by Ace. But that's over now. I'm finished with that. I'm going back to my regular girls and I will enjoy my wonderful free life like I've never have before! So, you want to come along or not?"

Finn shook his head, laughing. "You mean you go back to the girls that haven't enough up in their head to even keep your interest more than a few hours until you had your way with them? Sure, 'course I'm coming with you. No way will I miss that show. Because you're an idiot Logan if you think that you can just go back so easily, now that you know that it can be different."

Logan glared at him, but ignored his comments to look at Colin. "And you?"

Colin looked from Finn to Logan. "Sure buddy." Aha, at least one of his friends stuck to him. Good. Now he knew on whom he could really count. "Hmm, I'm wondering," Colin slowly added after a moment and looked curiously at Logan. "Now that you realized that you're not man enough for Rory, you mind if I go after her?"

Finn sat forward, grinning. "Damn, and here I had the same idea. Okay, Colin, you have first dibs, but if she turns you down, and she will, no doubt about that, I get my shot and I won't fail!" he looked at Logan. "You don't mind after all, right, mate? I mean, you're through with her, aren't you?" he asked, innocently if it wasn't for the mischievous glint in his eyes.

Not bothering to grace the two idiots with an answer, Logan stormed out of their dorm, slamming the door behind him. Unfortunately, it didn't shut out the laughter that trailed after him.

* * *

Half an hour, a cold shower and a whole new outfit later Logan's mood still hadn't improved. He wasn't really looking forward going out tonight, let alone picking up a girl. But neither did he want to sit home alone and brood. Pathetic. Rory had made him pathetic, yes, Sir, that was what she had done to him and that without actually being involved with him at all. But, no more. Logan had enough of being pathetic. And that was exactly why he had to go out tonight and return to his old life. Finn was wrong. He'd have no problem at all returning to his wonderful, simple, fun life before he had let himself be bewitched by a pair of killer blue eyes.

Right.

He grabbed his jacket and keys and left his suite, nearly running into Colin.

"Finally. We already feared that you drowned yourself in the shower," Colin greeted him, irritated, pushing him away a little.

"Aha, now that we made ourselves presentable… where are we going? Which of the many good places of this fine night deserves our presence?" Finn asked with a grin.

Logan shrugged. "I don't care, as long as there are booze and boobs," he said and turned towards the exit.

"What a high standard," Finn sighed. "Well, let's see what could lift the spirits of our dear mate here again so he leaves that insupportable bastard behind himself. Hmm… The fair Stephanie mentioned a party in her house that could just do the trick I think. Then there are the pubs, of course. Four of them offer a flat rate tonight, usually not our thing, sure, but it may be perfect for tonight. And…" His musing got interrupted by his cell ringing. "If you'll excuse me for a moment, someone's searching for the great Finn," he apologized and reached for his phone, flipping it open. "You've reached the incomparable Finn. How can I make you happy, dear caller?" he asked as the three of them proceeded to leave their dormitory, making Logan and Colin roll their eyes.

Finn's next words though made Logan slow down to glance at him. "Love? How did you get this number?" Finn asked surprised. "Parties? Well, of course I can tell you, I'm the party king, but you know, I bett…" he said with a grin breaking out but obviously got interrupted, as he abruptly shut up to listen, the grin fading again.

Love? Logan had only heard him call Rory like that – but that didn't make any sense. Why would Ace call Finn of all people, especially today, after the prank?

"What?" Finn asked. "Okay, love, calm down and start from the beginning," he said with a frown, stopping. Logan and Colin stopped as well, looking curiously at him.

"The Fro-Yo social?" Finn asked confused, but then shook his head. "No, forget it, just continue."

Fro-Yo social? So it really was Rory! But what would she want from Finn? "What's going on?" he asked impatiently, slowly getting worried.

And it didn't help at all when Finn, after a long moment of listening, suddenly turned very serious. Logan exchanged a worried look with Colin.

"All right, love, calm down. We'll find her," Finn said soothingly. "You and Marty go check out the pubs, start with Rick's. Colin and Logan are with me, we'll check the parties."

Again, Colin and Logan exchanged a puzzled look. What the hell was going on? Though, Logan feared that the answer to that would include a certain sixteen-year-old girl named Anna.

"Don't worry, love, we'll find her in no time and she'll be just fine. Call me if you find her and we'll call you if we find her," Finn reassured. "Okay, we gotta go now, love. Bye." He closed the phone and looked at Colin and Logan. "Change of plans."

"Anna?" Logan asked, worried.

Finn nodded. "Yeah. Apparently she was supposed to meet Rory at the Fro-Yo social but she never showed up there."

"Damn," Colin cursed. "That's not good."

"No," Logan darkly said. College parties, as great as they were, were certainly nothing for a sixteen-year-old high-school girl, especially when she was on her own. He bit his lips. "Rory and Marty are checking the pubs?" he asked.

Finn nodded. "She called me to find out which parties are on tonight and where they are. I told her we'll cover them."

"Best we part ourselves: Finn, you go to the insiders. Logan, you check the house parties. I'll go check the fraternities' parties," Colin said.

"If you find her call Rory. Colin, I'll give you her number," Finn said.

Colin waved it away. "I have it, thanks. Come on, we're loosing time. Let's go."

With a nod, the boys hurried off into different directions.

* * *

Forty-five minutes and five parties later, Logan emerged from yet another party, still without luck. Damn it, where was that girl? And what had she thought, running off like that? Had she no idea what could happen to an unescorted girl like her? And why had Rory let her out of her eyesight that this could have happened in the first place?

Right. That had been his fault. Not entirely, but Logan was sure that Rory would put all blame on him – and if he was totally honest to himself, then that was closer to the truth than he liked. He had distracted Rory. He had encouraged the girl to live out the wild life as long as she had the chance and that was probably what she was doing right now. But fuck it all, who would have thought that Anna would just go off by herself?! God, what if she got herself snatched up by some perverts? Most guys at college were okay, but even here at Yale there were the low-lives that would love to get a naive virgin like Anna into their dirty hands.

Cold sweat running down his back, Logan hurried over the campus towards the next house and the next party. They had to find her!

His cell phone rang and he had pulled it out and open before the first ring was even over. "You've got her?"

"Yes and no," Finn tired voice told him. "Yes, she was found, but not by us."

"She's safe?" Logan wanted to know. 'Oh God, let her be safe'.

"Yeah, and that stupid girl can be so damn lucky that the police got there right after she arrived. Or, before I got there!" Finn darkly muttered.

"Where was she?" Logan asked, dreading the answer. The police? Finn threatening?

"Two Devils picked her up and asked her if she wanted to come along to a great party. One could think that the black leather and the piercing would be enough to warn anyone sensible to stay far away from them, but no, that girl goes happily with them," Finn sarcastically told Logan.

His heart stopped for a moment. "She was at a Devils' party?" he asked unbelieving. The Devils were a bunch of real bastards. Most of them were not actually students, but guys who profited from the desperation of an overwhelmed or lost student. For the right price, they offered you anything: drugs, steroids, girls, boys, a thorough whipping and even, if you really paid enough, they probably get you a weapon to kill yourself. Or go amok. The Devils didn't ask questions. Their parties were rough, wild, sick. And Anna had been right in the middle of it.

"You already told Rory?" he asked. God, Rory was so going to kill him.

"Didn't need to, she had already heard it from her headmaster. She doesn't know at what party exactly they rounded her up and I didn't think it was necessary to enlighten her," Finn said dryly.

Logan took a deep breath. "She'll find out eventually," he remarked.

"Perhaps, perhaps not. Listen, I had enough parties for tonight. I'll call Colin off and then I'll head back," Finn said with a sigh.

Closing his eyes, Logan nodded. He knew exactly how Finn felt and had lost the mood for partying altogether for tonight as well. All he wanted was to get home. "I'm with you. If you two want to, you can come over to my place to hang out for a little. Lanny's not home tonight."

"Okay, see you later, mate," Finn said and hung up. Slowly, Logan closed his phone and turned to head back to his dorm.

What a night.

* * *

And it wasn't over yet. He, Colin and Finn had perhaps been hanging out in his suite for less than an hour, having decided to kick back with 'Star Wars', when there was furious knocking at his door.

"Come in, it's open!" Logan called out, wondering who'd come at this time of night to see him, but too tired to actually get up. Besides, Luke and Obi-Wan just entered the bar where they met Han and Logan loved that scene.

The door banged open and Logan cringed at the sight that appeared there. Great. Fucking great. Just what he needed now. How did she know where he lived anyway?

"Are you happy now?"

With a sigh, Logan sat up. "Hey Ace. Come on in. Want to join us? There's still room on the couch," he invited her, hoping against hope that she'd get so hooked by Harrison Ford in his best role that she maybe forgot why she came here in the first place. She was a movie junkie after all.

"Yeah, love, there's all the room you want on my lap here," Finn nodded.

Rory ignored both, Logan's invitation and Finn's remark and came in, heading directly towards Logan. "My professor's mad at me, thinking that I made him look ridiculous in front of a class. I'm mad at your friends because you undoubtedly talked them into doing this nonsense. I'm so mad at you that I could castrate and skin you right now and while doing that I would be laughing madly! But you know, I could have lived with that. So you pulled a prank. The most stupid, inconsiderate prank I've ever seen in my life, but hey, you're a guy, so I guess I have to give you some slack there." Angrily, Rory leaned down and pocked her finger right into Logan's chest, hard. "But oh no, where every other person who has at least an ounce of common sense would stop and lie low for a while you just had to come to confront me, hadn't you? God, Logan, I know you like to surround yourself with bimbos that can be happy they remember their own name, but that doesn't mean that you have to get down to their level. Not that you're on a much higher level anyway, but you actually are quite smart, though I really don't know how that could have ever happened. Really, don't you know _anything_ about girls? They need at least two days to cool down enough for it to be safe to talk to them after something like you pulled today. No, you come, offer yourself up for a serious chewing down and of course I can't resist giving you just that, still being so mad that I'm breathing fire and not air. So, I sent Anna away. So, I lost her!" she hissed, stabbing him again with her finger.

"Ace…"

"Don't you Ace me, miscreant! You'll just sit here and for once in your sorry life listen to me! You think life here is a big joke. You think nothing you'll ever do will have consequences and why should it? Daddy probably bought you out of every stupid thing you ever pulled in your life! But guess what, Logan, for normal people, life isn't like that! Do you think I or Marty or any other normal student here on campus could have dared to pull that prank today, right in the middle of a class, without having to fear any punishment? No! We couldn't! Every single one of us would have to fear that we might get suspended, a note in our files or even expulsion. But of course not you, right, Logan? Not the son of the great Mitchum Huntzberger who donates just how many millions a year to Yale?" Rory asked with narrowed eyes and for the first time, turned her glare over to Finn. "Or you, Phineas Teverbough?" it wandered over to Colin. "Or you, Colin McCrae?" Her eyes returned to Logan. "Oh no, you probably won't even hear more than a lame warning, if at all. That's bad enough, but what I really can't forgive you is that you showed that to Anna! No wonder she thought there's nothing about it if she just goes off on her own with some guys to some wild college party! It will be fun, wouldn't it, and that's what college is about after all, right? Fun. All the fun you can have in the four, five years you're away from home and family. One long, never ending party! Oh, I know, she's one from the circle, so she probably always had a daddy that got her out of every clinch she ever had been in too, as he'll get her out of this one. And I know perfectly well that it's been entirely my fault that I let her out of my eyesight, just to give you a piece of my mind. But you know what? The fact that she run off with those guys and went to that party God knows where… that's _your_ fault! Your fault alone!"

"Come on Rory, I know you're mad at us, but Logan really can't…"

"Quiet, Colin!" Rory interrupted him, not even looking at him, but keeping her eyes boring into Logan's. "_You_ urged her to live out college life ever since we run into you in the library. _You_ once again proved to her that for people like you there are no consequences! But guess what, there always are consequences! And the consequence of your stupid prank is that a young, helpless sixteen-year-old girl ran around alone on campus tonight, going off with some stranger to a party that was so wild that it got busted by the police. But that probably was her luck, because who knows what would have happened to her otherwise! She's naïve and she's stupid and yes, she's been way too cheerful, but before you came along and pulled that joke on me this morning she wouldn't have dared to just take off like that, let alone go with those perverts! Another consequence is that my headmaster is now furious with me and thinks I'm a complete incompetent idiot who can't even show someone around Yale without getting busted by the police. Thank you so much for that Logan, I am so grateful to you that you forever ruined Mr. Charleston's opinion of me, a man who is not only my former headmaster I probably would have needed for references at one point or another, no, he's also a friend of my grandparents. Mr. Bell as well is angry with me and without doubt had ranted about my unbelievable prank to someone who without any doubt knows my grandfather as well. Tomorrow the latest I will have to answer my grandparents on how I managed to lose Anna and get her busted! And to just make it perfect I just had a stupid fight with Marty over you and I hate fighting with my friends!" she hissed.

Her face was red with anger and she took a deep breath as she straightened up again, glaring down at Logan. "All this because you didn't think for even one second but just went ahead and pulled that prank. Think about it, Logan!" she quietly told him in a very tight and controlled voice and looked at Finn and Colin. "You all think about it!" She turned and stopped with a glance at the flat screen television. Disgustedly, she shook her head. "But what are you three stooges doing? Sitting here and watching 'Star Wars'!" She glared back at them over her shoulders. "Luke and company is not the proper film to watch if you should feel sorry and ashamed! Watch 'Gladiator' and think you are Phoenix. Watch 'Schindler's List' and think you're the Nazis. Hell, watch 'Harry Potter' and imagine you're Voldemort and the Dementors, but for Heaven's sake not 'Star Wars'. It's way too much fun in the first place and none of you is cool enough to be Darth Vader! And no, not even you, Finn!" she added when she saw Finn opening his mouth. She marched off to the door and looked back a last time, still livid. "Thanks for helping search for Anna. Not that this wasn't the least you could do." With that, she finally left, slamming the door behind her, leaving a suddenly very cold room behind.

Silence.

"Okay…" Finn eventually slowly said, dragging out the word, and glanced at Logan. "You know what? I think I renounce my dibs. You can have her all to yourself. She's a vision when angry, true, and I even suspect that she's really a redhead with that temper, but no thanks, I think I can renounce from being the one on the end of that fire."

"It's way much more fun to watch from the sidelines anyway and see you squirm," Colin nodded, looking at Logan as well. "My regards, buddy."

Logan said nothing. He was too tired to give into the banter. Too confused.

"At least one thing's for sure: Life will never get boring with her around," Finn slowly said, more serious than joking. "For any of us, I may dare to predict, though you're the lucky bastard who thankfully is the one to get the brunt of it."

"Yeah, lucky me," Logan sarcastically said and sat forward, slightly rubbing at his chest. Ace sure had a mean finger.

What should he think about her showing up here giving him this lecture? Or about what she had said? Did this mean she'd forgive him one day now or not? Logan could think what Finn and Colin's opinion was. But that didn't make any sense. Nothing made sense anymore. Sighing, he closed his eyes. Consequences. Rory was wrong: he knew that the world was full of consequences. Hell, he was living in a constant consequence. But still… there was a lot of truth in her words and she had voiced a few things he had already realized himself during the frantic search for Anna. He knew that his harmless little prank brought a lot of trouble he hadn't foreseen. Why should he have, this wasn't the first time he pulled a prank, nor his first prank that was so public. Never before had it gotten out of control like that. Why this time? It had to be Rory. That girl attracted trouble like a magnet.

"What now? We watch this movie or do we follow Rory's suggestion and change movie to properly feel ashamed?" Colin asked, glancing at Logan.

Logan looked back at the screen. He wasn't in the mood for Han anymore. Nor for any other movie. Nor for company. Nor anything else but sleep. Yeah, he just wanted to go to bed and finally get this hellish day over with. It only could get better. In the morning he'd wake up and see that everything was all right. He stood up.

"You know what? I'm tired and I had enough for today. So I'm going to bed now," Logan told his friends, turning away.

"At not even eleven pm?" Colin asked incredulously.

No wonder, it's been years since any of them had gone to bed before midnight, unless they've been sick. But Logan refrained himself from responding to Colin's remark. He. Had. Enough.

"You mind we finish the movie?" Finn called after him.

"Whatever," Logan muttered and vanished into his room, shutting his door, shutting out the world.

* * *

He hadn't slept well. Probably had gone to bed too early. All night long, nightmares had disturbed him, nightmares about Anna alone on campus, and nightmares about Rory ripping him apart. So in the morning he was glad that the night was over. The sun was shining, he was free of a hangover and still he felt poorly. But he got up anyway, firmly hoping that it would get better in the course of the day. When he emerged from his room he found Finn and Colin still on his couch, fast asleep. Shaking his head, Logan turned off the television and went to get a shower. Ah, that finally did the trick. Feeling slightly better, Logan returned to the common room and made himself some coffee. He was on his third cup when Colin finally stirred. Another cup later and with the help of Colin, they've managed to wake up Finn as well – who was anything but happy with them for waking him up.

The morning went on and slightly, his mood improved. It helped that people still approached him about the prank and congratulated him. And that he didn't run into a certain reporter, but then, he carefully avoided any spots she might be in. He wasn't ready for another round with Ace, not yet. Perhaps never. Her absence though helped him to reflect on the previous day's happenings in a much clearer light and helped him realize that yes, there had been a few things that had gone wrong and yes, he had some things to straighten up – but it wasn't as a much drama as Rory had made it yesterday and nothing changed the fact that the prank had been a damn good one – if not one of his bests. Not even Ace could change anything about that fact or the fact that she was pretty much the only one beside Professor Bell who hadn't enjoyed the break in the boring student routine. Anna was fine and hopefully had learned her lesson that she shouldn't go off with strangers like that – and that even college wasn't just fun if you get busted by the police and wouldn't that please Ace? Besides, Rory's facial expression really had been priceless.

Oh yeah, by the time Logan met Colin and Finn for an early afternoon coffee break he was almost back to his usual carefree, happy self. Everything would turn all right and if Ace failed to give in and see the humor in it all, now that emotions were cooling down, then that was her loss. Colin too was pretty much flying high. Only Finn was still muttering about being up since the dawn – a slight exaggeration as it had been slightly over half past nine when Logan had gotten up and that was still an hour before Finn woke up.

"You know, I think we should do this a lot more often!" Colin said enthusiastically, taking a sip of his coffee and looked impishly at Logan, who sat beside him on the bench. "And it turned out it wasn't so bad that I was the kicked-out guy after all. I have already four dates set out for the coming week. All feel so sorry for the so wrongly left poor guy."

From behind them, Finn snorted, but said nothing, just groaned as he squinted at the sun.

Logan rolled his eyes. "Yeah, it looks like we did a real good number there," Logan said with satisfaction. 'Take that Ace', he thought triumphantly. Apparently a lot of thought that there should be more about college life than studying.

"Logan!"

Startled at the not quite familiar voice, Logan looked up and watched Richard Gilmore heading towards him. What was _he_ doing here?

"Huh, Richard?!" Logan greeted him and stood up to shake the older man's hand. Colin too had gotten up and straightened up, his usual reaction when one of the older generations showed up. "Wow, this is a pleasant surprise," Logan said conversationally and nodded at his friends. "Finn, Colin, you know Richard, don't you?" he asked them, giving them a curious look. Today wasn't an alumni day, so what was he doing here? Visiting Rory? Wanting to know how it came that she lost Anna? At that thought Logan cringed. God, he hoped not. Ace was already mad enough at him after all.

"Well, hello boys, nice to see you," Richard greeted Colin and Finn, shaking their hands as well, and returned his attention back to Logan in a way that made Logan nervous. Or had Ace been right and Richard had heard about the prank and now came here to give him the lecture he wouldn't get from his father or the professors? "Logan, I wanted to talk to you. I just heard about the incident."

Damn! But hey, perhaps this wasn't about the prank after all. Incident could mean a lot after all. "The…?" Logan tried to clarify.

"I heard you professed your feelings for Rory." Richard smiled.

Stunned, Logan stared at him. That was a bit of a strange way to describe the prank. "Wha…?"

Behind him he heard Finn give a strangled sound that sounded an awful lot like a suppressed laughter whereas Colin gasped.

"Mr. Bell is a very dear friend of mine, as is the Dean of Admissions. Well, you know in this place, news travels fast," Richard explained, emphasizing the last part with a pointed look.

Logan nodded nervously. So it was the prank after all. But somehow he got the feeling that Richard had gotten it a little wrong. Damn. "Well look…" he started to explain, but got interrupted.

"I have to tell you that while I understand what could have driven you to such a public display of affection, there is an appropriate time and place for that sort of thing," Richard said with a smile at him before his eyes narrowed to look sternly at him. "And a classroom in the middle of class – is not one of them," he chastised Logan.

"No, I know, I…" Logan started to apologize, seriously, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable in his turtleneck. It was a bit tight there around his neck.

"However," Richard cheered up again and gave Logan's arms a strong pat. "What's done is done. It's out. So I dropped by to tell you that I have spoken to your father."

All color drained out of Logan's face. "My father?" he yelped, panicked, with wide eyes. His father? Barely, he could hear his friends behind him take a sharp intake of breath. His father? Why would he speak to his father? What the hell…

"We pounded out a few things. Property agreements, pre-nups, that sort of thing," Richard told him businesslike.

_Pre-nups??_

Had Richard really just said pre-nups? Okay, apparently Richard had gotten it _all_ wrong. What the hell had those guys told him?! "Okay, I think that there's been…" he tried to clear up this mess, still dazed by the fact that Richard had talked to his father about pre-nups. Damn it, that damn collar really was suffocating! But once again, Richard ignored him and interrupted him.

"Oh, we came to a very fair agreement. I'm sure you'll be pleased," he assured Logan with a satisfied expression in his eyes. "Now, we're setting up a dinner for next week to finalize the engagement and start talking about the wedding." Engagement? _Wedding?!_ Horrified, Logan ghastly stared at Richard, his mouth dropping open. This wasn't really happening! "Emily is handling all the newspaper announcements, so, not to worry, that's all taken care of," Richard told him.

"But…" Logan weakly protested, his mind blank but to the words pre-nups, engagement and wedding. Had they lost all their marbles now?

But Richard's next words shut him up again. "She is a fine young lady, Logan. I want her to be happy. You'll take care of that, I assume," he said, no, warned, and Logan felt himself automatically starting to nod before he stopped himself. No. No. This wasn't real. He was still in bed and having a nightmare. That was the only explanation. They weren't really marrying him off! It was still way too early for that! "All right, I'll let you get back to your coffee break," Richard once again cheered up and Logan slowly looked at Finn and Colin and back to Richard, desperately hoping that they would smirk at him and tell him that he was imagining this. No such luck though. They looked as baffled by this as he was. "Nice seeing all of you again!" Richard said to Finn and Colin who raised their cups at him, speechless. "And Logan," he addressed Logan and Logan looked at him warily, fearing what more he had to say. "Welcome to the family," Richard happily told him and jabbed him gently with his fists in the chest before he walked away.

Rooted to his place, Logan looked after him, his mouth hanging open, his eyes wide with terror and his heart beating hard and fast against his chest.

Marriage. They were going to marry him off and there was nothing he could do about it. They already made the contracts. They handled the announcements.

Blood rushed in his ears, he felt like suffocating and black dots started to dance in front of his eyes.

"I think you should sit down, Logan." Colin's voice dimly came through Logan's panicked stupor.

In slow-motion, Logan turned his head to stare at Colin.

"Yeah, you don't look so good. No wonder… Come on mate, you better sit down before you pass out on us," Finn nodded, looking worriedly at him.

"Did…" Logan had to start again, his voice having failed him. "Did he just… he didn't just say that… Ace and me? They're… they are not marrying us off?" he stuttered, his voice rough, and he felt his heart still racing while his lungs tightened more and more, barely giving him enough air anymore.

Colin just nodded, himself feeling short of breath before a heart attack. Sighing, Finn though gave Logan a slap on the back. "You sure claimed her, huh mate? And just to make one thing clear: I want to be the best man."

"Finn!" Colin hissed and nervously looked into the direction Richard had gone off to. "Okay, first you need to call Mitchum. Explain that there's been some terrible misunderstanding. Then surely you can still get out of it. I mean, they can't force you to marry her, right?"

Finn laughed. "If you ask me, you perhaps better save that breath and nerves and just go call your tailor for your tuxedo and think about where you want to spend your honeymoon with the lovely Reporter Girl. Hmm, I'd stay away from Fiji, and Hawaii's so common…" His face lit up. "Hey, why don't you come to Australia? I know some nice, cozy places you two could consummate your marriage to the outmost."

'How could he joke about this?!', Logan thought but wasn't yet able to think straight enough to yell at Finn. It's been just a joke for Heaven's sake and now they're planning the wedding?!

"You know, perhaps it's for the best you go personally to Mitchum. If you head out now you should make it before Mitchum goes home," Colin urged him on and made a face. "Because I don't think it will be a good idea to clear that at home. No doubt Shira's already calling around to book the Starlight Room for the reception."

Go to his father? Was Colin crazy? No way would he be stupid enough to go to him! He'd kill him for sure this time! Logan shook his head and groaned miserably. God, what had he gotten himself into?

"Uh, uh, no way. Logan, mate, forget about Mitchum. I think you should better go find your fiancée," Finn shook his head. "Mate, she's new to all this. She'll need you. And you need her to help clear up the mess. Besides, you two will be married by the next summer the latest, so you better start to take proper care of her now and go protect her."

Rory. By God, Logan didn't want to know how she'd react to the news of their engagement! He was dead. So dead.

"Finn, this isn't helping!" Colin hissed. "Can't you see that Logan's nearing a breakdown here? Forget your stupid jokes and better help figure out a way to get them out of this! The pre-nups are already set! You know what that means!"

Wounded, Finn looked at him. "Just trying to be realistic here," he protested and looked at Logan, thoughtfully. "Hmm, you probably have to move out next year as they don't allow married people in the dormitories. I'm sure gonna miss you. But hey, perhaps we can get something together. Colin, I, you and your lovely wife. Of course you can have a floor of your own, though I insist it's the first floor. No way do I want to have the room beneath you!"

Slowly, Logan sank back down onto the bench and buried his head in his hands. 'Okay, breathe deeply and think, Huntzberger!', Logan ordered himself. This was just a misunderstanding. Somehow, Bell and the Dean had neglected to tell Richard the whole story. More likely, Richard hadn't let them finish and just threw down the phone to hurry off towards his father to start making the arrangements, believing that Logan had really publicly announced that he was in love with Rory. Well he had, but it's been just a joke! He wasn't in love with his Ace and certainly was universes away from marrying her. Though not as far away enough from Rory, especially after she heard the news. Hmm, shouldn't she have already heard the news? Surely Richard had first gone to her? And Emily probably was already on the phone with her to ask her a million questions about the engagement party and the wedding.

Strange…

Logan would have bet that the minute she heard it she'd come racing to him to scream at him again, just as she had done it last night.

He frowned. Thinking about it, by now his cell should be ringing non-stop with his parent's trying to reach him and demanding explanations in the case of his father and details in the case of his mother. And of course, the usually declaration of disappointment from all of them, with his grandfather being the loudest of them all. His frown deepening, Logan yanked out his cell to check on the battery. Perhaps it had died down. Or perhaps…

Right. Not one single call, battery fully loaded with full range.

His head shot up and his eyes narrowed as blood rushed back into his head with realization.

_That little wench!_

Finn laughed out loud. "Took you long enough, mate!" he chuckled and gave him another slap on the back.

"What?" Colin asked confused, looking from Finn to Logan.

Logan though had zeroed in on Finn. "You knew about this?"

His eyes widening slightly, Finn quickly held up his hands and stood back. "Of course not. Just figured it out a little sooner than you, mate. You know I'd never dare to pull a thing like that on you!" he assured hastily.

No. Finn would go far – but not that far. Not even he would go and joke around with marriage. No sane, normal person would do that. But then they had already established yesterday that Lorelai Leigh Gilmore was far from being sane or normal.

_That unbelievable, crazy, nasty, mean, clever, vicious little WENCH!!_

Angry beyond reason, Logan jumped up. "I'm going to kill her! What the _hell _was that woman thinking?!"

Colin stood back as well. "To get back at you?" he asked, finally having comprehended as well that Logan had been played a terrible prank.

Logan rounded on him. "Get back at me? You don't get back at someone with something like that! Marriage! Has she finally lost it all the way?!"

"Logan, buddy, come on… she's a girl. Clever no doubt, but still a girl. She didn't grow up in society. How's she supposed to know that anything around a marriage is strictly taboo?" Finn, out of some unknown reason to Logan, tried to defend Ace.

"By using common sense!" Logan hissed and started to pace. He wasn't a pacer. Yet, here he was, pacing _again_. "And she declares _me_ to have a lack of it! If I have no common sense then she, she…argh!"

"She gives me hell about one little, harmless prank and she lets me go through minutes of pure hell and torture for that?! And what about her great speech from last night, huh?" Logan snapped, glaring at his friends. "She barrels into _my_ room and chews me down for having a rich father that gets me out of trouble and lectures me about consequences and then? Then she goes, calls grandpa and gets him to do this to me! And why the hell did he play along with this?! He's one from us! He has to know that one doesn't joke around with something like that!"

Paling again, Logan stopped dead in his tracks to look shocked at Colin and Finn. "Oh God! It isn't a joke! Richard surely only played along because he expects that this is exactly what is going to happen! Consequences, my ass! Has she any idea that she just set us both up to be engaged by the end of the year?! What was going on in that head of hers? She's supposed to be smart for fucking sake!"

"Logan! Jeez, calm down! You're overreacting a bit here," Colin cut through Logan's tirade, trying to calm him down.

"Overreacting?! Pre-nups Colin! Pre-nups and engagement announcements and wedding!" Logan yelled, getting angrier with every second. How _dare_ she? "Hell, Richard even gave me the standard warning and the worst of it all: he meant every word he said there! Fuck, fuck, _fuck_!"

"Yeah," Finn chuckled. "And mate, you should have seen your face. Priceless. She really pulled one on you. And now," he warned and held up a hand when he saw Logan rounding on him, "don't go berserk on me! Yeah, she pulled a prank on you and what a prank it was. But she only reacted to yours and if you ask me, she won by far."

"This isn't a contest Finn!" Logan snarled.

"No, it isn't," Finn nodded, turning serious. "It's way worse than that. It's high school. But if we all remember those tenuous days we might remember what it meant when we pranked someone."

"It said that we liked that someone," Colin calmly said with a smile.

Logan stared at them as if they had just sprouted a second head.

"Exactly," Finn agreed and carefully took a step closer to Logan and lowered his voice. "Well, you pranked her and we all know here that you did it to claim her as yours. And to show her in a very childish way that you liked her. Good. She got mad, understandable. And you got mad because it looked as if she wasn't just mad but mad mad and might never forgive you." His eyes gentled, but still laughed at him. "But now she pranked you back. Think what it means and forget about everything else, even the whole marriage business."

"She forgave you," Colin once again named it, his smile growing. "You probably still have some buckling to do, but she forgave you. And she likes you. Or she'd never go to the trouble of pulling such a stunt just to get back at you. She'd just ignore you and forget about you if she really were indifferent to your charms."

Speechless, Logan stared at them and backed away. That was the most harebrained theory he'd ever heard. "You two are crazy, do you know that? I don't care what it means or may mean! All I care about is ripping off her head! And no way will I buckle before her, not after this! In fact, I'm going to tell her just what I think about her little stunt as you called it and will strongly advise her to get herself committed. Hell, I'm going to call the orderlies myself and save humanity from any future madness she may come up with!" He nodded furiously. "Yep, that's what I'm going to do and I'm going to tell her that right now!"

Quickly, Colin and Finn each stepped forward and grabbed his arms. Glaring at them, Logan tried to struggle his arms free. "Let me go! I'm going to go kill her!"

"That's what we're afraid of," Colin darkly muttered and tightened his grip. "Shit, get a grip on yourself, Huntzberger!"

"Who do you think she's with right now, huh? You really want to storm there and kill her in front of her grandfather?" Finn hissed. "Mitchum and his lawyers can get you out of a lot of things, but not that, Logan. Richard Gilmore is a man with considerable power himself. You don't want to make a scene in front of him!"

"The hell I don't! He was part of this!" Logan raged, yanking at his arms, but he couldn't get free.

"No you don't!" Colin insisted. "You want to cool down and in a few hours, when you can think straight again and Richard has left you can go to her if you still want to, but until then you better stay the hell away from her."

"This can't wait!" Logan protested.

"Yes it can," Finn nodded and together with Colin dragged Logan away towards their dorm. "And you'll thank us for this. So much that you'll name your firstborns after us: Finn and Colleen."

"Hey, if at all then it will be Colin and Philomena!" Colin protested.

"It will be neither! And we could still be friends after this! Now let me go!" Logan furiously promised them.

"Yeah, yeah, think we've heard that before. We're just saving you from yourself and ensure that you don't blow the fragile chance Reporter Girl gave you there," Finn commented unfazed by Logan's threats. "And remember, I'm the best man."

"No, no, no," Colin protested and shook his head. "I know him longer. I support him longer. I look out for him longer. _I_ get to be best man."

He and Finn would get to go to hell, that was what they'd get, Logan swore wrathfully.

* * *

Finn and Colin still lived and Logan thought that it really was a proof of his incredible restraint that that was so, he thought with gloom, almost two hours later, as he walked over to the Branford House to finally give Rory a piece of _his_ mind for a change. But then, that hadn't necessarily had to stay like that. His father knew a myriad of useful people – surely there had to be one or two hit-men among them.

Honest to God, they had watched him closely in their dorm, guarding him!

Only when Logan pretended to have calmed down and acted reasonable did they finally let him go. Not that he had acted unreasonable before. He had a right to be angry. She had threatened him with _marriage_!!

It didn't matter that he had pranked her first. It didn't matter that it only was a prank. She had gone too far! _And_ she had more than likely gotten them in real trouble by involving Richard into this.

Arriving in front of her door, Logan knocked sharply.

No answer.

Gritting his teeth, he knocked again. Today was Wednesday – her last class was finished early and she usually came back to her dorm before she set out again. She should be here. Or arriving shortly.

The door was yanked open, but Logan wasn't faced with an impatient Rory – but with an impatient Paris Gellar. Great. Just what he needed today.

"What?" she hissed. "I'm meditating!"

"Doesn't look like it's working then, huh?" Logan asked sarcastically.

"Shove it, Huntzberger. What do you want?" Paris snapped.

"I need to talk to Gilmore," Logan truthfully answered.

"She's not here," Paris told him shortly and was shutting the door again.

Or tried to as Logan quickly shoved a foot forward to block the door and pushed it open again. "Then I'm waiting for her."

"This isn't a waiting room. Come back later or better even, hunt her down. Now get your foot out of my door before I hack it off," Paris growled.

Logan narrowed his eyes. Lunatic. That girl was a lunatic. "As I assume that she'll arrive here any minute, I'm going to wait right here for her," he told her and stepped around her into their common room.

"The hell you will! Get your ass out my dorm!" Paris yelled and pointed to the door.

He turned to face her. "No," he said, using a tone he had heard many times from his father and grandfather. It allowed no discussions.

Paris narrowed her eyes. "You don't impress me, Huntzberger. We may have had the luck to so far avoid each other in the circle, but I have no lesser name than yours. So spare yourself the power games."

Logan nodded. "Then you know that nothing you will say or do will get me to leave before I had a few words with Gilmore. Now we can do this the civilized way or we can do it the shark way. But I'll stay."

Taking a deep breath, Paris pointed to one of the closed doors. "Whatever. But you are not disturbing me further in my meditation. Wait in her room or get lost."

Logan smiled overly politely. "Thank you," he sarcastically said and looked at the door. Ace would hate that he'd be in her room. And he just loved that little fact. Not hesitating for a second, he moved over to it and entered Rory's little private world here on campus.

Surprise, surprise, it was loaded with books. But not as tidy as he thought it would be. Somehow, he always imagined it would be like Colin's room where not one pen was out of place. But it looked as if a bomb had just blown up in here. Grinning, he moved to the bookshelf closest to him and looked at the titles there, soon making a face. School books or books related to her classes. Pathetic. With a sigh, he turned away from the shelves and took another glance around the room. All in all, he had to admit that it was pretty cozy. And though he hadn't imagined it like that, it still screamed Ace. Yeah, he could feel at home in here as well.

Logan frowned at that thought. Nonsense. Complete nonsense. He was here to tell Ace off and then that would be it. This was the first and last time he was in here.

"I'm home, Paris!" he heard Rory call out in the common room.

"I'm meditating. What the fuck is so hard in comprehending that I'm meditating? First that idiot, now you!" Paris yelled.

"Well sorry Paris, but I still have not recovered from the surprise that wandered out of your room the previous _afternoon_, in your pink robe nonetheless, thinking I was the television," Rory answered dryly. "You bet I'm announcing my arrival as loudly as I can from now own. I'm already marred enough, thank you very much."

"You have no right to judge my sex life!" Paris retorted angrily.

"Uh, uh, uh, Paris! Remember the rules! No kinky talk. Especially not with me still having that image in front of my eyes from your sex partner," Rory told her warningly and despite himself, Logan had to smother his laughter. And hell if he wasn't curious about the guy stupid or brave enough to take it on with Gellar… On the other hand, judging from Ace's reaction, he probably was safer off not knowing it.

Hmm… now that he thought about it – he could have a little fun before he told her off. A good dose of biting sarcasm… yep, that was just what he needed right now.

"You've got a visitor. And please make it clear to him that this here is a dorm, not some chicky-micky waiting room!" Paris informed her roommate nicely.

Too bad. Logan had already looked forward to see her face when she saw him waiting for her in here.

"Oh, and thank you so much for immediately telling me this," Rory said and Logan could almost see her eyeroll.

A second later, her door opened and she came in. "Sorry, Grandpa! I thought you'd…" she stopped dead away when she saw that it was Logan waiting for her, not her grandfather, and her eyes narrowed. "You."

Well, that face wasn't bad either. Actually, it was quite hilarious. Oh yeah, he was going to have a little fun right here and now.

He smiled at her. "Hey, honey, how was your day?" he asked with a feral smile, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Not taking her eyes away from him, she came in and closed the door behind her. "Quite good actually. Had a great time. Lots of fun," she answered sweetly.

"Did you? Hmm…" Logan smirked with a raised eyebrow. He'd bet that she had a great laugh today. "That's wonderful, honey. I just came by to talk to you about your engagement ring. My grandmother's ring good enough or do you want something new? Or even specially made?" he asked, as sweetly as she had spoken before.

Rory threw her things onto her desk and pulled off her coat, removing the scarf from her neck and both things flew onto her bed. "Oh, you know, darling, it doesn't matter, really. As long as it comes from you with love, and costs a fortune, I'm going to love it. Your mother though called and would like to know when you have time for a few fittings."

Unbelievable! She even dared to bring his mother into this. Logan shook his head. "Babe, I've been refusing to let Mom do any fittings for me since I was eight years old," he told her, the truth actually. He hated his mother's taste. Narrowing his eyes, he shook his head. "I got to admit, Ace, I wouldn't have thought you had it in you."

She flopped down onto her bed and looked up at him. "You shouldn't underestimate a Gilmore girl. We're vicious if you cross us and you so were in for a little lesson in that. And a warning: stay out of my classes."

The nerve of that girl! Deep down though, Logan found it interesting that she had warned him to stay out of her classes, not out of her life. Not that it was important anymore. "You crossed the line Gilmore," he told her flat out.

Ace raised an eyebrow. "As did you. So where's the problem?"

Shaking his head in frustration, Logan prowled over to stand in front of her. "You. Joked. With. Marriage," he told her, emphasizing every word. "You don't joke around with something like that, especially not in a circle as ours."

She really had the audacity to smile up at him. "Oh, I know. That's exactly why I aimed at that particular soft spot. After all, what else could have bothered you enough to even get close at you? Even the thought of marriage makes the blood in your veins freeze, doesn't it?" she asked. "Because it's such a serious thing in your book. But guess what, Huntzberger?" she said and turned serious. "My classes and my future are as serious to me. You made fun of those. So I made fun of your worst nightmare."

Damn it, where had all the big words vanished to what he had practiced in the two hours since her prank on him? Speechless, he stared at her.

She chuckled and patted his knee. "Don't worry Logan, you're not the first that was graced with the honor of being the center of one of the feared Gilmore revenges. And you won't be the last, I may predict."

"You're pretty smug," Logan darkly muttered eventually.

"Of course, I am. Weren't you smug as well, yesterday?" She grinned. "Boy, Huntzberger, you should have seen your face. Wonderful. Grandpa actually half worried that your dopey friends, his words, not mine, hopefully knew CPR and I gotta say, I can understand where he got that impression."

Angry suited her. But hell, her gloating made her damn irresistible, Logan thought as he fought back the urge to kiss the smirk off her face.

No. He needed to concentrate on his anger. No way could he get himself so easily defeated by her! Her grandpa! Yeah, that it was! Narrowing his eye to slits he squatted down to come on eye level with her. "Ace, have you any idea what you caused when you involved Richard in all this? Today, it may have been a joke, but believe me that next thing you know you'll find yourself in a fitting session for your wedding gown. That's why we don't joke about these things here, Ace! They don't understand fun like that! They hear even the whisper of a possible connection, especially one as ours and that joined family dinner to discuss the engagement Richard threatened me with will become harsh reality." He shook his head and stood up again. "You talked big about consequences last night, Ace, but you can't even fathom what consequences your little prank on me could have. Or, do you want to get married within a year?"

Snorting, Rory sat up. "Logan, do you honestly think that my grandparents aren't imagining marrying me off to you ever since they saw us together at that shindig? They think we make a handsome couple and, to let me quote Grandpa: 'Not a bad connection at all'. And I strongly suspect that Grandma is already imagining her great-grandkids and you can be sure that they have blond hair and blue eyes. So believe me, there's no way anything could have made their obsession with you and me worse. I merely used it for my own goals."

Suddenly, Logan felt very much like choking again. Kids? Kids? God, it was worse than he had thought! "And you fueled that?" he asked unbelieving. Didn't she know she couldn't do that? It only made things worse.

"Logan, relax," Rory sighed. "They're not going overboard yet. And if they are, Mom and I will call them back."

He stared at her. Could she really be so naïve? "Ace, you need to listen to me! If they start to urge you into a connection then you can't fuel that even more by more or less giving them reason to get ready to call the wedding planner!"

Annoyed, Rory shook her head. "Seriously, Logan, what can they do? They can think and plan all they want, in the end I still need to agree to it, to say yes and that's hardly going to happen." She looked at him, gently. "You always have a choice, don't you realize that?"

A choice? On which planet did she live? People like him had no choice. Yes, they had a pretty carefree life, with enough money at hand to buy you almost anything, with a name and power behind it that would get you almost anything you wanted. But it had its price and the loss of choice was one of them.

"Perhaps in your world, surely not in mine," Logan bitterly told her and gave her a long look. "You underestimate them, Ace, and sooner or later you're going to realize it." He paused for a moment. "Let's take this for example: What will you do when they put before you the choice to either marry me or they stop paying for Yale? Drop out? Try to enroll on a state college? You think you get to be the ace reporter you want to be then? You think that state college won't cost either? You think they're going to give you a scholarship? Why should they? One look at your name and your family and they'll ask themselves why you even bother to apply with the resources at your back, just as it had been the case here at Yale."

Rory stared at him with wide eyes. "But they'd never do such a thing to me, Logan," she quietly said.

He caught her eyes, the sincerity, sureness in them. No. They probably wouldn't. "Then you're one extremely lucky girl, Ace," he said tonelessly.

For a long moment, they stared into each other's eyes, and Logan could see something entering Rory's eyes he couldn't quite place, just before Rory suddenly flipped down on her bed again. "Sooo, how long did it take you to figure out that I got you squared and good, Huntzberger?"

Blinking, Logan stared at her smug, triumphant smile and slowly frowned. "Pretty fast actually. I mean, it was pretty obvious after all."

"Oh, yeah? Didn't look like that when you gasped for air like a stranded fish," Rory remarked, blinking innocently up at him.

"You're a pain in the ass, Gilmore," Logan darkly muttered.

"Why thank you! Just what I thrive to be," Ace laughed. "Come on, Logan… you pranked me. I pranked you. I won. I think we're even now."

"Even? Even? I pull one harmless joke on you and you sent the hounds after me with pre-nups and engagements and you think we're even? Hardly. You so owe me," Logan protested, still frowning.

"Owe you? Logan, Logan, you better not think what I think you're thinking. Believe me, you don't want to get into a prank war with me. I'm not exaggerating when I tell you that Gilmore girls are pros in pranking and I learned from the best of them all," she warned with a grin.

Oh yeah? That sounded a lot like a challenge to him.

"Careful, Huntzberger… next time I may come down on you with your father instead of Grandpa," Ace hinted.

Despite himself, Logan had to raise an eyebrow and smirk. "Tough luck there, honey," he told her. He'd want to see the person that could bring the great Mitchum Huntzberger to disgrace himself like that.

Rory rolled off her bed and came to stand very close to him, giving him the opportunity to notice that her unique scent was stronger in here than anywhere else. "You better remember that I'm a Gilmore. We Gilmores usually get what we want. And we Gilmore girls are experts in getting even the gruffest of your sex to do what we want." She batted her eyelashes at him. "Now, do you really want to risk that I'm as good as I say, Logan?" she asked innocently.

In hindsight, he perhaps didn't want to see this. Though he thought it impossible, Ace more than once had already managed to surprise him. And if she really managed it then, whatever she may believe, he'd never get out of having to marry her. Besides, he didn't really want to get into a prank war with her. They weren't in high school anymore after all, but grown-ups at college. Not to mention that the past two days had probably cost him at least one year of his life already – and surely would bring him grey hairs at least two years sooner.

"I thought so," Rory smiled and stepped away from him, grabbing her coat. "How about this, Huntzberger: I'll buy you coffee and you buy me one and we're officially even?" she offered a truce, her eyes locking with his.

Here and now. Here and now, he had the opportunity to get rid of that troublemaker. Logan looked longer at her than probably was proper, as a frown started to wrinkle up her forehead. "Logan?" she asked.

Taking a deep breath, Logan slowly nodded. In Omnia Paratus after all. "Sure. Sounds like a plan – if we let it follow with a drink. Rounds of coffee for you, rounds of drinks for me," he conditioned with raised eyebrows.

She thought about it for a moment. "Okay, as long as it's a Sheridan."

Logan smiled. He could live with that. "Then you've got yourself a truce."

With a nod, she opened her door and looked back at Logan. "After you," she said.

But Logan shook his head. "Oh no, what a gentleman would I be to allow that? After you, my dear," he protested and hinted a bow.

Shrugging, Rory left her room, Logan following closely. "How long will it take for you to stop with the wife endearments?" she asked suspiciously.

Logan just grinned and opened the dorm door for her. "I guess we'll just have to wait and see, honey. But as long as Finn's going to torture me with marriage jokes, you can safely count on me to pass on the torture to you," he told her. She was getting off easy enough in Logan's opinion. But he just hadn't been able to uphold his anger. But nothing would stop him from not letting her forget it for a very long, long time.

"Fair enough," Rory sighed and stepped outside.

Damn right.

* * *

TBC!

_(Author's note: I'm not going to whine again about the length of this. I knew it would become a monster chapter after all and I predict it won't be the last... so get used to it. sigh There are tons of additional scenes and I hope you enjoyed them – and didn't get bored! Thanks for the many wonderful reviews! I loved every one of them! And please, keep them coming! They're fueling and inspiring me!)_


	6. Saving the day

**Chapter 6: Saving the Day**

**(Women of Questionable Morals)**

"Okay, can someone bloody tell me why we're only coming back now but I'm still not drunk?" Finn asked with a frown and a deep sigh.

"Because you have a test in Psychology tomorrow, one you declared you actually can't fail," Colin explained, exasperated for perhaps the millionth time this evening.

Logan nodded. "And therefore you asked us, your dear, good friends, to make sure you stay sober tonight," he elaborated with a grin and a yawn.

"Oh… Then why did we bother to go out at all? Why am I not in bed right now?" Finn asked grumpily.

"Because you also said you couldn't read one more word and needed to kick back tonight," Colin sighed.

"Hmpf… it's no fun without my dear good friend Johnny," Finn said darkly and hugged himself. "It's bloody freezing! Why's it so fucking cold?" he whined.

"Duh, could be because it's winter," Logan said with an eyeroll.

"Exactly. It's not supposed to be winter! It's supposed to be summer! And it's definitely not supposed to be snowing!" Finn pointed out and glared up at the sky. It didn't seem that the falling snow was impressed in the slightest by him, though.

"North America, Finn, not Australia," Colin reminded him with a sympathetic pat on his shoulder.

"And before you ask, you're here because of school," Logan quickly said when he saw Finn opening his mouth again.

"This night sucks," Finn muttered darkly.

"See the positive side: tomorrow, well, rather said today is Thursday and you can party through for at least two weeks," Colin tried to cheer him up.

And indeed, Finn visibly brightened up. "Oh yeah! And then there's the next LDB event next week, right? Party!"

"Now you're thinking straight," Logan nodded.

"Though Robert and his boring sidekicks are organizing it," Finn remarked, his mood already darkening again. "And we all know that his events are always pretty boring."

"True, true," Logan agreed and made a face.

"Oh, come on, it's not that bad! The last one wasn't so bad," Colin defended his friend.

Finn snorted. "Oh yeah? May I ask which event you've been? 'Cause the one I attended was booooooooring and far from being worthy to be called an honorable Life and Death Brigade event."

"He's right, Colin. I mean, come on, Woodstock?" Logan asked, looking at Colin beside him – or so he thought. "Colin?" he asked, looking back to see that his friend had stopped a few feet back and was staring into the night.

With a frown, Colin looked at him, then away again. "Am I hallucinating or is that really Rory over there?"

"What?" Logan asked and quickly followed Colin's gaze.

Ace? At this hour? Impossible. But sure enough, Colin wasn't hallucinating. There she was, standing very still in the middle of the yard, with her back towards them.

Raising his eyebrows, Logan exchanged a look with his friends.

"What's that girl doing there?" Finn asked, voicing the question that probably was in all their minds.

"I haven't the slightest idea," Logan answered, looking back at Rory. "But I intend to find out," he said and started to go over to her, Finn and Colin closely following him. When they got closer, they could see, well, rather hear that she was talking to someone on the phone.

"You're crazy, you know?! Waking me up and making me go outside in the middle of the night! You know, if it's for something special, but no, it's something that's occurring year after year. I _do _have classes tomorrow, you know?" She was saying, moving constantly on the spot to keep herself warm while she listened to what the person on the other end was saying. "Okay, okay, I admit it's nice." Again she stopped briefly and then sighed. "All right, all right, it's a miracle and the best, unbeatable, most wonderful moment of the year and as soon as I'm off the phone I'll do the Happy-First-Snow dance and will fall down to the ground to kiss the white wonder in order to appropriately honor and appreciate this glorious gift mercifully given to us. Happy now?" she asked and though Logan couldn't see her face, he was pretty sure that she was rolling her eyes right now. He glanced at Colin and Finn and had to grin at the identical smirks on their faces. "Okay, I'm ending this lunacy now. Say hi to Luke, okay?" she said but instead of ending the call, she still held the cell to her ear – until she pulled it away for a few seconds, before slowly holding it to her ear again. "Ihhh. You know, you're sick! Way too many details there! Now let me go back to my precious beauty sleep and don't do anything I wouldn't do." With that, she finally finished her call, shut the phone and put it into her coat pocket.

Sighing, she let her head fall back and with closed eyes, let the snow fall softly onto her face. Obviously, she had no idea that the three boys were standing behind her and watching her and that was just okay with Logan. He was mesmerized by the sight in front of him and only too aware of the way his body reacted to the vision of peace and contentment Rory presented them at the moment. 'God, it should be forbidden to be so beautiful!', Logan thought and swallowed. His mouth was suddenly very dry. Damn it, why had she such an effect on him? He'd been with girls that looked a lot hotter than her – though he couldn't remember even one right now.

Enough.

"So Ace… we're waiting for that dance," Logan said dryly, his voice perhaps a bit too rough to sound normal as Finn and Colin snickered.

Shrieking, Rory gave a start and turned around to face them with wide eyes. "Jeez! Logan! Give the girl a warning here!"

"Or perhaps you should be more aware of your surroundings, especially when you're here alone in the middle of the night?" Logan retorted, tilting his head with a look that is chastising her. He wasn't kidding. She really should be more careful about her safety. What if it hadn't been him with Colin and Finn but some mugger or rapist?

She looked neither impressed nor chastised though. "For that I have my maze. Actually, you can be happy that you didn't just get a full doze to your face. Really, sneaking upon an unaware girl like that," she said and shook her head.

Maze? Well, at least something. Though if he really had been someone with dark thoughts in his mind then she would have had to be a damn lot faster in order to protect herself. He _should_ have gotten that dose of maze, though he was thankful that that wasn't actually the case.

"Hope you don't mind me asking but _what_ are you doing here anyway?" Colin asked with a raised eyebrow.

Immediately, Rory blushed and looked down. "Uh… nothing."

"Nothing?" Finn smirked. "Sorry, love, didn't look as if it was nothing. Rather looked as if you came out here to this bloody freezing coldness just to see the snow falling, as crazy as that seems."

Rory sighed and faced the boys again, shrugging uncomfortably. "My Mom just has this thing with the snow, and the first snow is especially – special."

"And what kind of a 'thing' would that be?" Logan wanted to know, not bothering to hide his grin.

"Uh, well…"

"Yes?" Colin urged her on.

Rory made a face and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Boy, it's really freezing out here. I really should go back now," she evasively said and quickly turned away.

But Finn swiftly moved to block her way. "Oh no, love, you won't get away so easily. So… what thing?"

Ace stared at him and then slowly moved her head to look at Colin and Logan. She frowned. "You won't let that go, would you?"

"No chance there, Ace," Logan answered with a shake of his head.

"I thought so…" she said with a sigh and gave another shrug. "Okay, if you absolutely have to know: Mom has some kind of a friendship going on with the snow. She's convinced that the best things happen to her while it's snowing. Hell, she _smells_ it coming. So, in true Gilmore style, she's a bit obsessed and chases everyone she loves out to properly welcome her special friend back every year. Hence my presence here." She looked at the baffled expression on the boys' faces and smirked. "Happy now?" she asked sarcastically.

"You ever thought about letting your mother be checked out for insanity?" Colin asked after a moment.

"No, what sense would that make? Everyone knows that she's crazy," Rory laughed and looked up at the sky again, smiling softly. "But you know, though I'm not as obsessed about the snow as she is – no one can be that – I kind of love this moment as well. It is kind of beautiful, isn't it? Everything softens, the world turns into a fairytale snow land that glistens in the sun and sparkles in the moonlight and people are smiling more often, at least after the very first snow has fallen." Her arms still hugging herself tightly, she closed her eyes, the smile still playing at her lips. "When I was still back home, Mom and I usually went for a midnight picnic in the first night everything was covered with snow. We'd walk through that world of magic with no soul around but us and enjoy the feeling of how the snow squishes under our feet. At one time, we stopped at a bench, sit down to eat the first cinnamon cookies of the season and drink hot chocolate while Mom starts to list all the good things that happened to her when it was snowing. And then we'd dream about what other good things the snow may bring us that winter."

Once again, Logan was mesmerized, not just by the beauty in front of his eyes, but also by the fairytale-like images she had conjured up with her memories. Reluctantly, he tore his eyes away from her to look at Colin and Finn and wasn't surprised to see that they seemed to be as astonished and struck by her words as he was. Perhaps even a little jealous because none of them ever had experienced a similar beautiful moment with a parent, not even Finn whose relationship with his parents was a lot better than Logan's or Colin's.

After a moment of silence, Finn stepped forward to put an arm over Rory's shoulder. "All right. Let's go."

Startled out of her reminiscing, Rory opened her eyes to look confused at Finn. "What? Go where?"

Finn shrugged. "Dunno. Just somewhere. We'll do that walk through the snow, eat cookies and hey, we could take along some fine grog as well and we'll celebrate the first snow in true style!"

Laughing, Rory shook her head. "Now?"

"No time like the present, love!" Finn answered and winked at her.

"Finn, it just started snowing. There's no snow land to wander through yet. So that would have to be tomorrow night," Rory pointed out.

"Oh," Finn mumbled and his face fell. "But isn't there a walk through when snow first falls also?" he asked hopefully after a moment.

"That sounds promising, but, we have classes tomorrow. Well, I have classes tomorrow at least, not to mention a test in Literature." She frowned. "Actually, don't you have a test in Psychology as well?"

"But first snow!" Finn whined.

"Doesn't count when you're a busy student," Rory told him firmly. "No, no, no, Finn, you will go to bed now so you'll be fit tomorrow for that test. As it is, I will head back now as well. Perhaps I even can get another couple of hours of sleep in before I have to get up again," she added with a yawn.

"Ace is right, we should head back," Logan nodded, giving Finn a warning look. Really, sometimes Finn really acts like a five-year-old, a grumpy five-year-old, at least after a dry evening.

"My speech for almost two hours now," Colin sighed and stretched.

"Okay, guys, see you," Rory said to the boys and started to head back towards her dorm.

"Whoa, hold on there Ace." Logan stopped her with a frown, catching her arm. "We're bringing you back of course."

She turned her head to look incredulously at him. "Logan really, that's hardly necessary. It's just over there, no one's around and my maze will surely be enough for me to walk the few Kropogs back safely. I don't need an escort of three!" she protested and tried to free her arm, but Logan held on firmly.

"You're not going alone," he told her firmly and looked at Finn and Colin to see if they wanted to come as well. He kind of hoped they wouldn't though. And he was lucky…

"But you're undeniable right that you don't need three escorts, so I'll see to it that this grouchy Australian finally goes to bed while Logan here will make sure that you survive this awfully long walk back to your dorm," Colin said sarcastically with a meaningful glance at Logan that Logan answered with a glare. Colin grinned. "Come on, Finn."

"Hey, who says we don't need to protect Reporter Girl from Logan? I say we go…"

"Goodnight, Finn," Logan interrupted him, looking him straight into his eyes for a second, then turned to Rory and tugged gently at her arm to indicate that they should leave now.

"Yeah, goodnight you two. And good luck tomorrow, Finn." Rory nodded and with a last wave, turned to Logan. "You know, this really is ridiculous. Just go with them," she mentioned though as they were walking towards her dorm.

"Now you hurt me, Ace. Here I am, doing my manly duty to escort my precious fiancée safely back to her kingdom and all you do is tell me to get lost." He sighed dramatically. "Admit it, you're having an affair and he's waiting there for you, that's why you don't want me to bring you home."

"Damn, busted," Rory cursed and looked sadly at him. "Okay, Logan, I guess sooner or later you had to find it out. His name is Colonel Clucker, in case you're wondering, and we go a long way back."

"Colonel Clucker?" Logan repeated puzzled. "Hmm, military huh? Wouldn't have thought you'd be one to fall for a uniform."

Rory gasped. "But really, there are no real men without uniforms! Didn't you learn anything from 'An Officer and Gentleman'?"

Logan chuckled. "Well, yeah, but I tend to believe more into 'Pride and Prejudice' where we can see clearly that a uniform may blind you for a while, but in the end you realize that the man in the suit is the true gentleman."

"Please, don't tell me you see yourself as Mr. Darcy!" Rory snorted and stopped in front of her dorm suite. "First of all, wrong hair color. Second, you're way too easy-going to be the proud, stiff, but definitely hot Mr. Darcy."

"Hey, I didn't say I was Darcy, just that I learned my lesson there," Logan corrected and watched her opening her door. "Sooo… where is this Colonel Clucker now? I'd like to see the guy you're breaking my heart and leaving me for."

She turned to him a last time and smiled up at him. "Well who knows… perhaps I'll introduce you to him someday," she said quietly, with a flirting smile that made Logan's heart beat faster. Unconsciously, he leaned in closer to her. "But definitely not tonight. 'night Logan. Thanks for the escort," Rory cheerfully said and before Logan had time to protest, she had entered and shut the door behind her.

Taking a deep breath, Logan closed his eyes and straightened.

Damn.

* * *

"This better be good," Logan growled into his phone that had rang for ten minutes straight before Logan finally had enough and reached for it.

"I need help to get Finn up," Colin's voice came over the line.

Logan disconnected.

The phone started to ring again. Groaning, Logan snapped up the receiver again. "Not my problem," he hissed.

"We promised him and may I remind you that you were the one with the harebrained idea to offer our help and give our promise," Colin said indignantly. "So get your ass over here and help me wake him up so that he's fit for his test in two hours."

"How hard can it be? He wasn't drunk after all!" Logan groaned.

"Well, yeah and that's the problem. He was so sober that he couldn't sleep, only finally falling asleep in the early morning hours and can't be waken now. You know how deep his sleep is," Colin explained. "So get here and bring coffee. Lots and lots of coffee. We'll need it."

The line went dead.

Moaning, Logan put the receiver down and let his head fall onto his pillow again. After a moment though, he dragged himself out of bed and stumbled over to the bathroom, hoping that a shower would wake him enough to find his way over to Finn and Colin's suite. That alone probably wouldn't be so hard, but Colin had demanded coffee. That meant he first would have to go outside. And that complicated the thing considerably.

As Finn would say: It was bloody early and Logan hadn't had much sleep. Finn hadn't been the only one having trouble falling asleep. Logan's musing about his short meeting with Rory earlier had kept him awake for a long time.

A good twenty minutes later he felt ready enough to face the day and headed out, hurrying over to the nearest coffee stand. Thankfully, there weren't many people up yet so he hadn't had to wait long. Actually, there was only one customer in front of him, some old guy he never had seen around before. Technically not too surprising, Yale was big after all, but considering the time of day and the age of the guy which was still a little uncommon - and annoying, as the guy needed a long time to decide. But then, he looked as if he hadn't the best of night himself either, not that that was an excuse for making Logan wait so long.

Impatiently, Logan moved on the spot to keep himself warm, glaring at the back of the guy.

"Look Sir…" Harry, the coffee stand guy, started to say and glanced apologetically at Logan. "You really need to…"

"Okay, okay, give me an espresso, black please," the stranger sighed and pulled out his wallet. Rolling his eyes, Harry went to pour him the espresso when the guy indecisively looked at him. "Listen uh… you happen to know a beautiful little girl with brown hair and blue eyes? Name's Rory, Rory Gilmore," he asked after a moment, causing Logan's head to snap up and narrow his eyes suspiciously at the guy. Rory? What did that guy want from Rory?

Harry briefly looked up. "Rory? Sure. Every coffee guy around here knows her."

Giving a strained laugh, the guy nodded. "Yeah, that's her. Listen, you perhaps also happen to know where I can find her dorm?"

Tensing, Logan caught Harry's eyes and minutely shook his head. He had no idea who that guy was or what he wanted from his Ace, but he didn't thought it was a good idea to tell that guy such information.

Thankfully, Harry seemed to share his opinion, as he briefly shook his head. "Sorry, I'm just serving her coffee. You'll need to ask in the Registrar's Office," he said and handed him the small cup.

Sighing, the guy took it, handing Harry a bill in return. "Of course. And where can I find that office?"

"You go back to the main entrance and follow the walkway straight all the way to a big, old building with columns. Once you're in, you go left, then right, then up the stairs, left, left, and there on the right side you'll find the office," Harry explained and handed him the change.

Logan hid a smile. There would have been a more direct and shorter way over to the registrar's, let alone less complicated. But out of some reason he found himself very pleased by the prospect that this guy would soon run around the campus in complete confusion.

"Uh, thanks," the guy said, already looking lost. "Keep the change," he added and with another sigh turned to walk back towards the main entrance.

Logan looked after him until he vanished around a corner before he stepped up to the stand. "Nine large black ones, please," he ordered. "You've seen that guy before?" he asked after a moment, a frown on his forehead.

"Never. Just hope he won't mean any trouble for Rory," Harry said, starting to fill coffee into large cups.

"They won't tell him where to find her if he hasn't a very good reason to talk to her," Logan said, his frown deepening. That guy better not be planning on harming his Ace in any way whatsoever.

"True, but who knows if some idiot won't point him to her dorm before he gets there," Harry objected to Logan's dismay.

God, he hoped not. Worried, Logan looked after the guy again. "He first needs to get past Geller," he said, more to reassure himself than to Harry.

Harry laughed. "Poor guy. He'll need more than an espresso for that. Okay, Huntz, here you go." Harry handed him the nine cups of coffee.

"Thanks," Logan nodded and handed him the money. With a last glance after the guy, Logan turned to head back inside into his own dorm.

Surely, Rory would be safe - if the guy found his way over to Branford House at all.

At least he hoped so.

* * *

"Okay, let's not do this again for a very long time," Colin groaned as he turned away from the door through which they had just pushed Finn.

Logan nodded. "Not until the next finals after all."

"We're crazy to keep bothering with him," Colin muttered darkly.

"Come on, apart from that and the terrible mocking he taunts us with he's not so bad," Logan protested – weakly.

"Whatever. I need to go to my Contract Law class. Later," Colin said and hurried away.

Slowly, Logan left the building. Unlike his friends he hadn't had any classes that morning. One more reason why he had been so reluctant to get up at an ungodly hour just to go help Colin get Finn ready for his class. He should be in bed still, enjoying one of the few mornings he actually could sleep in as long as he wanted. Instead, here he was, not really knowing what to do with the time he has now. Going back to bed was unfortunately not an option as Logan wasn't one of the people who just could go back to sleep once he was up and running – let alone with two cups of coffee in his system. He could work a little on his papers that were due soon – nah, he wasn't in the mood for studying. Well, there was also still that article Doyle was pestering Logan with, the one he foolishly had more or less offered to do. He made a face. Nope, definitely not. So what else could he do?

Sighing, he looked up and, to his surprise, saw the stranger from earlier again. Looked as if he had managed to find Rory after all, as he was talking to her, handing a large cup of coffee to her. Despite the fact that she took it, she didn't look exactly thrilled to be talking with that guy. Actually, she looked pretty uncomfortable there, defensively even, while the guy didn't seem to want to stop talking any time soon. Frowning, Logan watched them a moment longer, seeing how she seemed to be growing more uncomfortable by the minute. Okay, that was it. Logan started towards them, but stopped when he saw the guy push cream and sugar into Rory's hands and then hurried away. Standing there for a moment longer, Rory eventually turned to head to the opposite direction the guy went to, directly towards Logan, though Logan doubted that she was aware of that. Not letting her out of his sight, he waited until she was passing him before he addressed her.

"Hey, Ace," he called softly, falling in step beside her.

With a start, she looked at him, frowning. "Oh… hi, Logan. Didn't see you there."

"Apparently," Logan remarked and watched how she seemed to fall back into her thoughts. "So, when do you have your test?"

"What? Oh… uh, this afternoon. Last class," Rory absentmindedly answered.

"Ugh, I hate that. Ruins the whole day," Logan said conversationally.

"Hmm."

He glanced at her. "What do you think if we skip a few classes and go out to town a little," he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Hmm."

"And after that we could head out for dinner. I know some great Spanish place down in Bayonne. In an hour tops we'll be down there but believe me, the paella in that place is worth it," he continued, his eyebrow rising higher. "Of course that would mean that you'll miss your test."

"Sure."

Shaking his head, Logan stopped her with a brief touch on her elbow. "Okay, Ace, what's going on?"

Startled, Rory looked up at him. "Huh?"

"Ace, you just agreed to skip your classes _and_ your test to spend the day with me," Logan pointed out.

Disbelievingly, she looked at him. "What?"

Logan simply nodded. "So, want to tell me what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," Rory assured him with a frown.

"Yeah, sure, I can see that," Logan answered dryly. "So, who was that guy?"

Immediately, her eyes darted away. "Which guy?"

"Ace," Logan warned, narrowing his eyes a bit.

She sighed and shrugged, still not facing Logan again. "No one. Just my Dad."

Her dad? Surprised, Logan looked at her profile. He had heard her talking about her mother, her grandparents, some girlfriend of hers he thought was called Lane and several people from her town – but never had she said one word about her father. "He visiting you often?" he asked her curiously.

Ace snorted.

"I take that as a no?" Logan asserted her answer.

Finally, she turned back to him, slight anger on her face. "That's the first time he bothered to visit me here. He's never around."

Logan said nothing, just waited. He didn't have to wait long. "He never was, not while I was a child, not when I was a teenager and surely not whenever I would have needed him. And when he did show up then…" She abruptly broke off and turned away, hurrying down the walkway.

Catching up with her, Logan turned to face her again. "Then what?" he probed gently.

"Then he messed everything up," Rory answered him before she could stop herself. Shaking her head, she quickly looked away from him.

For a long moment, Logan knew better than to ask her further. Eventually though, he decided that she may be ready to talk again. "Sooo… then what was he doing here? Just being in the area and thought he could drop in for a short visit?"

"Hell, if I know," she muttered darkly, frowning. After another moment, she glared at Logan. "Look, I don't want to talk about it."

"Fine with me," Logan answered easily, but kept a close eye on her.

It was obvious that her father's visit had disturbed her. And from the little she had just let slip, that was no wonder. Strange, he had never wondered about her relationship with her father. Actually, he had a hard time picturing a father in her life, perhaps because she never had mentioned him before. Nor, as Logan realized suddenly, was he ever mentioned in society. He had figured that her father had been some poor guy with whom her mother had a quick romp in the gardener's house or something like that. Well, that guy sure hadn't looked his best – or especially rich.

"I mean, what does he think? After everything he had messed up in the past, after what happened the last time I've seen him, he thinks that he can just show up here to play daddy and I let everything drop to go have breakfast with him and forget everything?" Rory angrily said, throwing the cream and sugar away. "He apologizes and talks something about the wall between us and he thinks that it will just go disappear because of that? Whose fault was it in the first place that this wall appeared between us, huh? Surely not mine! I'm not the one who thought that a short call every other week would be a substitute for him not being there! I'm not the one who needed five years to come visit us in our hometown! I'm not the one who didn't even show up for his own daughter's graduation! And I'm sure as hell not the one who got some blonde bimbo pregnant right at the moment that my Mom would have been ready to give them a try after all and therefore broke her heart!" She stopped to take a large gulp of her coffee, made a face, and threw it away, disgusted. "But sure, he shows up, buys me coffee and thinks that will be enough for us to have a loving father-daughter relationship! Argh, I can't believe it!" Her eyes turned on Logan and apprehensively, Logan took a step back. "That's so typically for you guys, you know? You play around, never take on any form of responsibility and if danger shows up, you run like scared chickens! Then one day you think, hey, why not try the responsible way for a change, so you come barging into the lives of the ones you left behind to reconcile with them, not bothering to think one second about the way you'll hurt those people and jumble their life all over again in the process!"

"Whoa, Ace, reality check here," Logan said, holding up his hands. "I'm not your dad, remember?"

She blinked and grew aware of just who she was talking to as she blushed and quickly looked at her feet. "Sorry Logan. Didn't want to blow up at you like this. It's just…" She shrugged helplessly and looked up at him. "You know, you just remind me of him."

Puzzled, Logan frowned. "I do?" he asked, somewhat unbelieving. He for sure couldn't see any similarities between himself and that guy and he didn't particularly liked that Rory thought so.

Her cheeks reddening a bit more, she bit her lip. "Well, kind of… I think Dad was a lot like you when he was young – or how he would have been, if he had followed the plan and would not have ruined his life by getting my Mom pregnant and having me," she bitterly elaborated. "I mean sure, he was destined to go to Princeton, but I bet he too would have lived according to that code you and Colin and Finn and all the other rich boys around here seem to live for. As many girls you want, as much booze you want to drink and as many wild days and nights you can have. Actually, that was exactly what Dad did, once he broke off away from the family and tried to live his own life. Every time he called he had another 'girlfriend'. And since my grandparents urged me to be at more of those boring society parties some of his old acquaintances told me a few stories here and there. Oh yeah, you're very alike. What is this? Some genetic virus in all your blue blood?"

Okay, Logan was the first to understand parental issues, especially with the fathers, but Rory was loosing it here. And did she really just say that her father was of high society as well? Strange. That desperate man sure hadn't looked like one of the blue-blooded. And why hadn't he heard about that before?

"Come on, Ace, calm down," he quietly pleaded to her.

Rory's eyes widened and she paled. "Oh, no! Logan, I'm so sorry! I.. I didn't want… fuck!" She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths before she opened them again to smile ruefully at him. "I fear right now is not a good time to be around me."

Logan shrugged. "No worries, Ace. You could say that I can understand such moments pretty well. And you know what? Best way to get out of the bad mood is to relax a little, forget about it all for a while. So I'm taking you for a break."

Of course, Ace quickly shook her head. "Oh no, I can't. My class…"

"Has already started at least ten minutes ago," Logan interrupted her protest. "Come on, Ace, just for a few hours. You'll be back for lunch and will even have some time to get a bit more studying for that test of yours."

"I don't know, Logan. I can't just skip classes," Rory still protested.

He sighed. "Please, it won't kill you to miss a couple of classes. Are you not one of the ten top students of your year?"

She was silent and feeling victory close, he smiled at her. "Trust me?" he asked.

"Occasionally," Rory said slowly.

"Then trust me now. If you don't do something about it you will only think about your dad's visit and how can you take the test and get an A when you can't concentrate on the questions?" Logan said, looking pleadingly at her. "Me, now, I happen to be an expert on strained meetings with the parental front and therefore know exactly what to do in order to save the day again."

It took a long time, but eventually, Rory slowly nodded. "All right. What do you have in mind, Huntzberger?"

Logan grinned and grabbed her gloved hand to pull her after him.

* * *

Amused, he watched as she took in her surroundings. Nope, she sure hadn't expected that.

Finally, she turned back to him and raised both her eyebrows. "A bookstore? You brought me to a bookstore?"

Logan grinned. "Not just a bookstore. It's the biggest and best bookstore in New Haven. But I'm sure you already know that, don't you?"

"Why are we here? I mean, is this the way… how do you call it… saving the day after a strained meeting with the parental front?" She asked, inclining her head to look curiously at him.

"Aye, but this is your saving, not mine so I figured a bookstore would just do the trick," Logan pointed out and smiled. "Or am I wrong in my assumption?"

"No, no, not at all," Ace quickly said, holding up her hands. She looked at the bookstore again and sighed. "You're right, I love to be here. But I fear I have to stay far, far away because I have self control issues whenever books are concerned. Not something that goes well with my wallet." She shook her head sadly and looked back at Logan. "And as that wallet is pretty much empty right now I fear you just have to bring me back."

Logan raised an eyebrow. Her wallet was empty? She was a Gilmore and her wallet was empty? How the hell did she manage to do that? But he pushed the thought away and shook his head firmly before he grabbed her shoulders and gently pushed her over the street towards the entrance of the bookstore.

"Logan! What are you doing?" Rory exclaimed, struggling.

"We're going inside and there's no escape for you. Then you'll go wild in there and don't worry. I brought you here, so it's my treat," he assured her as he pushed her through the doors.

"What?! No way, Logan! You will not pay for my books!" Rory protested, rounding on him.

"Of course, I am. So go, go, you don't have all day and this place is huge," Logan smiled and gave her a little shove towards the nearest table full with the books that just came out.

Still, Ace resisted and crossed her arms. "No."

God, this girl was stubborn. Rolling his eyes, Logan shook his head. "Yes, you are. Come on, don't you have some strange rule that you can't say no to offered books?"

"No," Rory said again.

"Well, then it's high time you add that rule to your life. Actually, I will enforce it on you as of this moment. Lorelai Leigh Gilmore shall not refuse any books offered to her. So there, now go wild," Logan told her, glaring firmly at her and pointed with his finger to the nearest section.

There flickered something over Rory's face that looked a lot like surprise and shock.

"What?" Logan asked with a frown.

But she just shook her head and took a slow look around before her eyes returned to rest on Logan. "You know, the last time someone offered to buy me books I busted his credit card. So you may want to be careful there."

Raising an eyebrow, Logan grinned, wondering slightly how she had managed to do that. Not that he was worried. He reached for his wallet and pulled out his American Express black card and flashed it to her. "Black card, Ace. Trust me, you buy out the whole store and you still wouldn't manage to bust this baby."

"Figures," Rory said with a sigh and shrugged. "All right, don't say I didn't warn you. Be prepared to bleed, Huntzberger!" She turned and headed off towards the stairs.

"Bring it on, Ace! And please, don't annoy me by holding back," Logan called after her.

She flashed him a grin over her shoulder and disappeared up the stairs. Logan looked after her for a moment and chuckled before he turned and stepped to the table with the new books. He figured he had a long waiting time ahead.

* * *

Two and a half hours later he had been in every section the bookstore had to offer in its six-story building and that meant really _every_ section. He had found ten books he wanted to buy himself, five more he wasn't yet sure about and he had spent quite some time going through comic magazines there at the end of his tour. Now he had enough and was trying to figure out how to find Rory. He had seen her a few times of course, but he had no idea where to find her now. Damn. Why hadn't he thought to give her a deadline and a meeting point?

At that moment he saw her coming towards him. "Why am I not surprised to find you here?" she asked rhetorically.

Logan grinned and shrugged. "'cause I'm a guy and you're a smart girl and so I figured out that you either had to find me here or up in the second floor in the sports section. I'm touched you know me so well already, honey."

"What can I say? Simple minds as yours are not hard to understand," Rory nodded and looked with laughing eyes at him. "So… you bored already?"

"Me? Bored? After almost three hours in a bookstore? Nah, never," Logan exclaimed, feigning shock. Then he narrowed his eyes and looked at her empty hands. "Where's your booty, Ace?" he asked warningly.

She shook her head. "Relax. I noted down the books I want. I'm not sure how to do this…"

"So you came to your Master and Commander to ask his wisdom and wait for your orders," Logan finished for her with gleaming eyes. "Good thinking, mate."

Ace wrinkled her nose. "Okay, you just made yourself a few hundred bucks short. I wanted to be considerate and not deplete your account, you know, but now? Now I'll add the second list as well."

Second list? She had two lists? Hmm… perhaps he really had been a bit quick to offer to pay for her very own dope… Nah. He stepped to her and put an arm around her shoulder. "Aww Ace, cute. Now come and show it to me. I can't wait to see the pile." A bit reluctantly, he let her go and headed towards the main check-out counter, Rory coming after him, judging by the glare he felt boring into his back.

"Hi. I'm Logan Huntzberger. There should be a pile of books waiting for me here?" he asked and gave the clerk his most charming smile.

"Yes, they're here, Mr.. Huntzberger," the clerk nodded, blushing a little.

Logan let his smile grow. "That's great. Now listen, I fear I have another favor to ask: I promised my friend here that I'll treat her today but I unfortunately forgot to tell her to have the books she wanted be set aside under my name here. She did write down the titles though. I wonder if it's possible to give you the list so you can check their prices and add them to my bill so I can pay for all of them. Then it would be great if you could pack the books and have them delivered to our dorms on campus. You think that's possible?" he asked, looking pleadingly at her while he drew out his wallet, making sure she got a good view of the black card.

"Sure, Mr. Huntzberger. We'd be delighted to help you, Sir," she hurried to say. "If your friend can perhaps give me her list now."

"Now, that's what I call a wonderful service! Thank you very much," Logan thanked her sincerely and turned to Rory. "Ace?"

She looked from him to the clerk, shook her head and stepped forward, handing the clerk a small sheet of paper.

"I thought there are two lists?" Logan asked with a smirk.

She turned her head to smile sweetly at him. "One on the front, the other on the backside." She looked at the clerk. "I wrote down the ISBN of each book so it should be no problem finding them."

"Thank you," the clerk said with a nod, already typing the first number into her computer. "This will take a moment, Sir. Why don't you go and get yourself some coffee at the café while I do this, if you like?" she said after a moment to Logan.

Logan nodded and took Rory's hand, dragging her over to the little café. The touch gave him the jolt he was getting familiar with, but this time, he just waited until it went down to that strangely comforting tingling and enjoyed the sensation.

"So, that's how it works when you have money, huh?" Rory asked.

He glanced at her, pretending not to know what she was talking about. "Whatever do you mean?"

"You just have to flash the card and they fulfill your every wish and kiss the floor you walk on," Rory said with a disgusted look on her face.

"I flash my card and they hurry to give me everything I want because they know that if I'm satisfied it's very likely I'll come back for their services again. I get what I want and they make a lot of profit, making both parties happy. But one has yet to fall on the ground to kiss the floor," Logan clarified. "Two cappuccinos, please," he ordered, quickly looking at Rory to see if she was all right with that. When she nodded, he paid the coffee and nodded to a free table. "And don't tell me Emily and Richard aren't shopping in the exact same way," he told her, sitting down.

Rory took a spoonful of the froth. "I've yet to go shopping with Grandpa, but Grandma's a lot more demanding."

Logan grinned. Oh, yeah, that he could believe. He shrugged. "Some work that way. I think that charm will get you more and farther."

"I bet you do. Especially when the clerk is female, right, Huntzberger?" Rory asked with a smirk.

"Jealous? Aww honey, no need to. It's you who has the ring on the finger," Logan drawled, looking forward to the glare that comment would earn him. Ah yeah, there it was.

"Don't you think this marriage joke is slowly getting boring?" she asked with a grimace.

"May I remind you that _you_ were the one who first brought that delicate matter up? I'm just paying my tribute," Logan answered, amused.

"Well, you might want to stop doing that or people could get the impression that you're very unimaginative. Now, wouldn't that be a terrible fate for you?" she remarked and drank her coffee.

"While I'm touched by your concern you don't have to worry about that," Logan assured her, drinking his coffee as well, emptying it. "You finished?" he asked. She nodded. "Come on then. The clerk's probably finished with your list by now."

"You think so? Hmm, we'll see," Rory said with a smile and got up.

Logan gave her a curious look, but followed her.

The clerk looked up when they approached the check-out counter again and held up a finger. "Just a minute more," she told them and resumed her typing. Logan looked from her to Rory who innocently waved through one of the books laid out at the counter and he got an apprehensive feeling. Just how many books had that girl put on her lists?

"Okay, that's all now?" The clerk asked after two minutes, looking up. Logan nodded.

"That would be $946.00 then," the clerk said.

Logan did a double take. "I beg your pardon?" he asked.

"$946.00, Sir," the clerk repeated, glancing at Rory who was still examining the book in her hand.

$946.00? His ten books would perhaps make a little over a hundred bucks. How the hell was it possible to buy books for over $800.00 in a normal bookstore without any first editions or rare editions or collector's editions? Slowly, Logan handed the clerk his black card and turned to Rory.

"You weren't kidding there huh, Ace?" he asked, still perplexed that she really had gone wild. He had been sure that she would perhaps buy three, four books top, not really comfortable with him paying for them. Boy had he been wrong.

"Whatever do you mean?" Rory asked in the same innocent way he had used the phrase before.

"Sir? Your signature," the clerk asked.

Logan turned back to the clerk and quickly scribbled his signature below the register receipt. "Please have them delivered to my address. It should be in your mailing list."

"Of course, Mr.. Huntzberger. Thank you for your visit here. It's been a pleasure to do business with you," the clerk told him pleasantly, smiling big.

"Anytime," Logan sighed and drew out a twenty-dollar bill that he handed her. "For your trouble. Good bye."

"Thank you ,Sir. Have a nice day," the clerk said with a nod and an even bigger smile.

Logan nodded and turned back to Rory to see that she had already moved to the exit and was waiting there for him. He joined her. "Not that I'm complaining, but I'm curious. Just how many books did I just buy you?"

"Hmm, I think that would have been twenty-five," Rory said.

"Aha… and do I want to ask how it's possible that those twenty-five books cost over eight hundred bucks?" he asked while they stepped outside.

"What can I say, I'm good," Rory shrugged and pulled on her gloves. "I did warn you, Huntzberger."

"You sure did. But I have to admit I underestimated you. I wouldn't have thought you'd dare to get more than three, four books if at all," Logan admitted and looked curiously at her.

"Well, it's your own fault. I told you I have no self control with books, yet you ordered me to go wild. Plus, you issued a new rule and the rule with new rules is to properly honor them by over exaggerating it the very first time it's put to use – after all, it could be also the last time. Now, you know me: I hate to go against the rules." She pushed her hands into the pockets of her coat and crossed the street, heading into the direction of Logan's car.

Logan hurried after her. "Yep, I think we all know that. So… I just hope that you were wise enough and didn't waste all my money on school books."

"Now, would I ever?" Rory gasped in shock.

Throwing her a dark look, Logan nodded. "Oh yeah, you would – and you have, didn't you?"

"Actually no. But there are a few books that one or another professor may have recommended to read," Rory admitted. "But as I'm not obliged to read them, be assured that they still very much count as fun books in my book."

"You're hopeless, aren't you?" Logan asked with a sigh.

"Beyond anyone's help," Rory nodded.

Her stomach picked that moment to growl and Logan grinned. "Ah, that's my cue. Come on, let's grab some lunch."

"Oh, no! You said we'll be back at Yale by lunch. I have classes and I still need to do a little additional reading. So…" Rory shook her head firmly.

"So you need to give that beast in there something to eat so it won't distract you from your studies," Logan pointed out nonchalantly. "And relax. I'm not talking about a five-course meal here but simply something substantial to grab. You're not the only one who has classes this afternoon."

Gasping, Rory put her hand onto her heart. "No! Logan Huntzberger actually attends classes?"

Logan just glared at her.

"Well, after this shocking news I really need something to stop me from fainting. Come on, I know a good place nearby. I'll even treat you," Rory promised and turned to go into the opposite direction.

Surprised, Logan followed her. "You'll treat me?" he asked unbelieving.

Rory nodded. "It's the least I can do after your generosity. I warn you though – it's no fancy place. But the best pasta place in Connecticut."

"You know, contrary to common belief we rich kids don't just eat caviar and drink champagne only," Logan said sarcastically.

"No? Now you're turning my world upside down. Just tell me you actually personally went to a Mickey Ds and ordered the Happy Meal and I may never recover," Rory retorted back with no less sarcasm.

"Actually, it was Burger King and a cheeseburger," Logan laughed.

She stopped to look suspiciously at him. "Seriously?"

"Cross my heart but not my fingers' great boy scout's honor," Logan swore.

"What?" Rory asked. "No way were you ever a boy scout!"

"No? Why not?" Logan wanted to know.

"Boy scouts are supposed to be honorable, nice boys," Rory pointed out.

"And I'm not?" Logan asked, interested.

"Well, you've got your moments, but no, I think you always were and still are a very, very naughty boy," Rory told him and raised an eyebrow, her eyes gleaming. "Right, Huntzberger?"

She didn't wait for an answer but just picked up her way again. "Hurry up! As you've noticed, we have a hungry beast to feed and you don't want to be late for classes, do you?"

Stunned, Logan just looked at her. God, what was he going to do with this girl?

* * *

"I can't believe you ate all that pasta," Logan said an hour later, shaking his head. "I can't believe _anyone_ can eat that much pasta. I hardly managed to finish mine and you even had a second serving that looked bigger than the first one."

"I'm nothing compared to my Mom. But then, she has sixteen years of practice on me," Rory deadpanned.

Logan threw her a doubtful look and concentrated back on the road. "Sorry, I really can't imagine that."

"Aww, you're not the only one having trouble believing it," Rory reassured him with a laugh. "You should see us at Thanksgiving. We are very popular people and we can't disappoint any one, now can we. Need I to say more?"

Quickly, Logan shook his head. "No, I think not. It's not good if the driver needs to throw up."

"I guess not. But other than your amazement at my eating skills, and your unjustified protests at the size of the portions, you've got to admit that this is the best pasta you've ever eaten in Connecticut," Rory said.

"I'll never be able to eat pasta again at any place other than at Marcelino's," Logan assured her and it was the truth actually. That pasta had been _good_. The best he ever had actually. He couldn't believe that he hadn't known about this place before. Well, no, actually, he could believe it, because of the way it had looked from the outside he'd never have entered there on his own free will. It looked run down and shabby and hardly a place where you could expect to get some decent food, let alone such a delicious one. He grinned devilishly. "I can't wait to bring Colin there."

Rory honest to God giggled. "Oh please, you can't go without me! I need to see this! How long will it take to get him inside, what do you think?"

"I'd say twenty minutes at least," Logan guessed and glanced at Rory again. "Wanna bet, Ace?"

To his disappointment, she shook her head though. "Uh, uh, no way. He's your best friend. I'd hardly have a chance. Besides, I doubt I can afford your bet."

"Please, Ace," Logan snorted.

She frowned. "What?"

"Ace, you're a Gilmore," Logan stressed.

"And?"

He looked at her half annoyed. "The Gilmores are old money. Big money. I think you'd have no trouble affording my bet."

Rory laughed. "What would give you the impression that I have in any way access to that money? It's my grandparent's, and yeah, they pay for school and the dorm stuff but for the rest I need to pay on my own. And as I don't have the loser card-swiping job anymore I fear there's not much I can afford right now, let alone any bet with you, holder of an American Express black card."

For a moment, Logan let her words sink down. "You mean you…" he started to ask incredulously.

"Am as poor as a church mouse. Look Logan, as much as I enjoy the ride in this fine yummy of a car, could you perhaps let those horses under the hood run a little faster? I'm going to be late otherwise and you don't want me to be late," Rory asked with a glance at the clock.

Still having trouble believing that Emily and Richard let their precious granddaughter live without any financial recourse, Logan needed a moment to wrap his mind around the fact what Rory had just said. "Excuse me, did you just call my prized and beloved Porsche a 'yummy of a car'?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I did. Why, something wrong with that?" she asked, matching his raised eyebrow with one of her own.

"Ace, you can't call a Porsche a 'yummy of a car'," Logan told her, shaking his head. "That's an insult some guys would kill you for."

"And why would that be? Believe me, yummy is very nice and complimentary in my book," Ace told him. "Especially for just a car."

"_Just_ a car? My Porsche's _just_ a car? Ace, you're killing me here. And who knows, my baby will perhaps never forgive you," Logan mockingly gasped.

"Well sorry, but I have to inform you that we Gilmore girls can't be impressed with cars. We only get all hot and bothered by a cool bike," Rory said.

Involuntarily, Logan swerved. "A bike?" His Ace fancied bikes?

"Oh, yeah. Ever been on a 2000 Indian with 80 horsepower and 5 speed close ratio Andrews transmission?" she asked sweetly.

"Uh… no. Not that I can remember," Logan answered faintly.

"No? Too bad. I had my first ride when I was sixteen and I tell you, it's been the hottest experience in my life for quite a while," Rory told him, her smile getting even sweeter.

His mouth going very dry, Logan uncomfortably shifted in his seat, trying to block the vision of his shy, slightly prudish Ace on a bike and failed. Damn it. He glanced at the air conditioner, longing to turn it to full freezing blast. But no, he wouldn't give himself away like that, he firmly told himself and tightened his grip on the wheel.

"Oh look, here we are, right on time. Well, at least when I hurry. You mind letting me out here?" Rory asked.

Shaking his head, Logan pulled to the curb.

"Good luck with your test," he wished her, desperately trying to keep his voice from sounding too hoarsely.

"Oh, I think it won't be too much of a problem." She pulled on her gloves and opened the door, letting blissfully coldness into the warm interior of the Porsche. For a moment, she hesitated and looked back at him. "Thank you for this treat, Logan," she said softly.

"Anytime, Ace," Logan answered quietly.

"Okay, I really need to go now. And you should hurry as well. Bye!" Within a few seconds, she had hopped out of the car and shut the door after her.

Deep in thoughts, Logan watched her hurry off, until a car honk woke him back to reality. Biting his lips, he pulled away and headed to his parking space.

Class. How in the hell was he supposed to go to class right now? What he really needed was a shower.

A very cold shower.

* * *

"So he lives!" Finn exclaimed when Logan walked into their suite in the evening.

"Where have you been the whole day?" Colin asked, coming out of his room, dressed for a night out.

"What do you mean where I've been? I was here just this morning." Logan evaded the question and went over to the couch to sit down beside Finn. "So, how did the test go?"

"Boring. But my grade's saved for the moment. And will you please not change the topic?" Finn answered with a yawn. "We had a date for lunch, remember? But you failed to show up. And when we gave you a call, we got forwarded to your voice-mailbox. What if there had been an emergency?"

"Please, what emergencies could there have been?" Logan asked with a snort.

"Dunno. American Airline stewardesses, pardon me, flight attendants, visiting Yale, showing the Moulin Rouge gals around?" Finn shrugged. "And you, my mate, are still stalling. So for which blonde did you dump us for? Was she pretty? Do I know her? She knows any nice redheads?"

"One thing's for sure, she must have been quite someone. Jamie and Seth said that you never showed up for any of your classes today. I thought you didn't want to skip today?" Colin remarked and came over to sit down into one of the two chairs left.

"Plans change. What's with the Spanish Inquisition?" Logan wanted to know, not just a bit annoyed.

Finn raised an eyebrow. "What's with the reluctance to share your day's events, mate?"

"There's nothing to tell!" Logan answered, irritated. "I was out in town in the morning. I got hungry, didn't want to drive back so I grabbed something in town. I came back, showered and went out to the dealer to look at a few bikes…" Logan bit his tongue. Fuck! Too much information!

"A bike?" Colin asked incredulous. "You hate bikes. Why would you go look at bikes?"

Squirming, Logan sighed. "Is it against the law to go look at bikes?"

"Did you buy one?" Finn asked curiously.

"No!" Though it had been close. That Ducati there really had whispered to him. Actually, the verdict hadn't been decided yet. "Not yet."

"Yet?" Colin repeated. "Come on, Logan, you want to tell us you're seriously thinking about getting a bike?"

"Why not? I have a car, several in fact. Same with boats. I have a plane and a helicopter. I have horses. Hell, I even have a carriage. So what's so wrong with thinking about completing the collection of every available means of transport with the only missing item, namely a bike?" Logan defensively asked.

"Nothing. You just hate bikes. Ever since you fell off one, while it was still standing, may I remind you, and your clothes got all black and oily," Finn pointed out. "So we of course ask ourselves what happened during this fine day that changed your dislike enough to go look at bikes again."

"Hmm, I think the correct question would be _who_ changed our friend's opinion here," Colin said slowly, looking closely at Logan.

When Logan nervously stood up to go over to the suite's bar, Finn laughed out loud. "Excellent Colin! So, mate? With whom did you spent this fine day?"

"Would you please stop saying 'this fine day'?" Logan asked him with a glare.

"Details, Huntzberger!" Colin demanded.

Logan shook his head and sighed. He knew well enough that they wouldn't stop pestering him until he spilled what they wanted to know. Besides, what could it hurt if he told them about his day with Rory? _Why_ was he so reluctant to tell them about it in the first place? He didn't know. He just knew that that was how it was.

"Hmm, you're usually only so tight up when a certain Reporter Girl is involved. But of course that can't be the case as said girl had classes all day and, if I remember correctly, even a test. So it's bordering to impossibility that the mysterious person you spent the day with is our lovely Reporter Girl," Finn slowly said and inclined his head. "Right?"

There was no getting around it. "I didn't spend the day with her," Logan assured Finn. "Just the morning," he added after a moment though.

"The morning? You managed to get Rory to skip classes? How did you do that?" Colin narrowed his eyes. "You didn't kidnap her, did you?"

Logan rolled his eyes and shook his head. "She had a bad run in with her father. She needed cheering up." He shrugged. "So I cheered her up."

"I'm sure you did," leered Finn.

"Her father?" Colin asked surprised.

Logan nodded. "Remember the guy I told you about this morning? The one at the coffee stand?"

"The one who asked about Rory?"

"That one. Turned out he was her dad. I happened to witness a little chat they had before her father left." Logan frowned, remembering Rory's confusion. And her hurt. "Looks like they don't have the best of relationship with each other. Or rather said the lack of a relationship."

"And that's bad?" Colin asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Hey, don't ask me," Logan said with a shrug. "Anyway, it was pretty much obvious that his visit had thrown Ace pretty much off balance. So I offered her one of my patented forget-and-cheer-up-again-trips. Took some convincing, but in the end she agreed. End of story."

"Oh, no, I don't think so!" Finn immediately protested. "Where did you take her?"

"Out to town," Logan answered, evasively again.

Colin rolled his eyes. "We kind of got that. Where exactly?"

Logan sighed. "To a bookstore."

Finn and Colin exchanged a look. "And?" Colin probed.

Exasperated, Logan shook his head. "And nothing. I brought her to the bookstore where we spent the entire morning. Then we went to grab a quick lunch and then we came back here. I'm good, but not even I can get Ace to skip an entire day of classes and a test."

"That's all?" Colin asked suspiciously. "You want to tell me that you brought her to a bookstore, you ate something and then you just came back?"

Logan nodded. Really, what was so hard to understand about that concept?

"And where exactly did the bike come into the picture?" Finn asked.

Very carefully to not meet his friend's eyes, Logan shrugged. "Never."

"Uhun… try to sell that bullshit to someone else, mate," Finn told him straight to the head. "So what happened? You wanted to impress her with your baby car and it didn't work? She perhaps mentions that she likes bikes though?" he then asked with a growing grin.

Gritting his teeth, Logan looked at Colin. "Hey, when you made that background check on Ace, did you happen to find something out about her father?" he asked, hoping that this question would distract his friends from this whole bike thing.

Colin frowned. "Hmm, no, I can't remember anything. A bit strange. But back then I didn't think it was important. I somehow just assumed that the father was some hired help – if he was known at all. So I didn't really think about it. Why?"

Logan shook his head. "Nothing. I assumed more or less the same thing. It's just... Ace said a few things that sounded as if her father was actually one of high society." He frowned. "Not that that makes much sense. Shouldn't we have heard of him as well then?"

"You didn't ask her?" Finn asked.

"No. Remember, I was trying to make her forget him, so no, I wasn't asking her any questions," Logan told him, rolling his eyes.

"Oh yeah. And I bet it's way much more fun to speak about bikes, right mate? Hmm, didn't I hear a shower included in your day-long program?" Finn remarked and winked at him with a leering smile. "Right after you came back? With the lovely Reporter Girl? Up close, clammed in that sardine box you call a car?"

Colin smirked. "You're lacking, Huntz, if all you get on a date is a cold shower. I assume it was a cold shower?"

Grinding his teeth, Logan poured himself a big glass of scotch. "Didn't you listen to a word I just said? I wasn't on a date!"

"Oh, come on! You fancy that girl for months now! And today, you finally get her to go out with you. You bring her to a bookstore to cheer her up and I bet that included you buying her at least one book. You went to have lunch. You brought her back in your Porsche and you don't call that a date?" Colin shook his head. "Please."

"We're friends. She's a friend. She had a bad run-in with her dad and needed cheering up. So I took her out to distract her a bit from his visit. That's all!" Logan protested and took a long swallow. "Nothing I wouldn't have done for any of you guys."

"Keep telling yourself that, mate," Finn remarked dryly and grinned over at him. "Besides, I very much doubt that a trip to town with us will give you the need for a cold shower. Or were you holding back on us here?"

Angrily, Logan killed the Aussie with a glare and turned away, irritated. "And what the hell is that smell?"

"Oh, darn!" Finn shot up and raced over to the kitchen area where he hastily threw open the door of the microwave. Smoke came out of it.

"Finn! I told you that was a bad idea! Do we need the fire extinguisher yet?" Colin exclaimed, jumping up.

Making a face, Logan quickly moved over to the window to open it.

Finn coughed and waved at the smoke, looking into the microwave. "Nope, all good. And they're not looking so bad. A little black, but who cares?"

Logan came back and raised an eyebrow at Colin, who shook his head. "He has the harebrained idea of baking cookies in there."

"Cookies?" Logan asked, his eyebrow rising higher, and looked over to Finn who took a small plate out of the microwave. "Cookies? Since when do you bake cookies?"

"Self-made they are the best or so they say. And only the best for us, right?" Finn answered as if that was the most obvious answer in the world.

Frowning, Logan approached the kitchen area, glad that the smoke was clearing more and more, and took a closer look at the black things on the plate. Disgusted, he shook his head. "Those don't look like the best."

"Well, that's only the first load. The first load is allowed to go messy. But you'll see, the next eleven loads will be just perfect," Finn responded unfazed.

"Oh, no, no way Finn! Not even one more load!" Colin hastily exclaimed, rushing over to them.

Logan nodded. "Only thing you'll do is set the whole dorm on fire. Besides, you'll be the only one eating those things anyway because as much as I love adventure, I'm not suicidal here."

"Hey! May I inform you that my cookies will be the best you've ever eaten!?" Finn protested.

"Hardly, as – as I've just said – I won't eat even one of them," Logan pointed out and frowned. "Why are you baking cookies anyway?"

"For tonight's trip of course," Finn said and looked down at his black and burnt cookies and sighed. "Hmm, perhaps they're really not suited for the microwave. I thought they would, despite that they've only mentioned ovens in the recipe. Oh well, I guess that means we need to stop at a 24/7 then before we head out."

"Trip? What trip, Finn? We don't have any trip planned," Logan asked, puzzled. Then he narrowed his eyes. "Did you just say recipe? You actually made the dough yourself?"

"Of course, I did! And sure we do," Finn answered and making a sad face, threw a towel over the burnt cookies before he turned to the stove top, opening the lid of a big saucepan, sniffling. "Well, at least the grog's turning out to be okay."

"Colin?" Logan turned to the sensible one of his friends as it was obvious that Finn wouldn't give him a straight answer anytime soon.

Colin snorted. "Don't look at me. He has been speaking in riddles ever since I got here and he had his hands deep in dough."

"You know, you could help me here a little. Midnight is in two hours and I still have to make the hot chocolate drink. So why don't you two go and get me the thermo bottles? They're in my room. I just hope the clerk who sold them to me was right when he said that the grog would stay nicely hot until we're out," Finn asked them.

"Midnight?" Logan repeated, slowly starting to connect the dots. He looked at the ingredients sprawled all over the corner and his eyes fell on a brand new box of cinnamon and he groaned. "Oh! No, Finn, please tell me you're not planning what I think you are going to do at midnight?"

"As I hardly can know what you think I'm planning then I fear I won't be able to tell you that, now can I?" Finn asked in his philosopher's voice. "But if you think that I plan to do a midnight picnic in the snow then yeah, that's exactly what I'm going to do."

Logan stared at him for a moment and then turned to glare at Colin. "Now tell me again you have no idea about this."

Colin laughed. "Sure I figured it out and believe me, I was a lot faster than you. Just didn't want to miss your dopey face once you do. And let me tell you, it's really been worth the wait. You're owing me Finn!"

"Yeah, yeah, what are a few bucks at such a nice time," Finn said, waving.

Shaking his head, Logan looked from one to the other. "You're crazy, you know that? I won't go out there in the middle of the night to freeze my butt off!"

"Well, you don't have to come along. If you do, though, I do advise you to cover that ass thickly," Finn said with a shrug.

Logan shook his head. "Uh, uh, not with me. You two can do whatever you want but I'll be in the warm pub, having some real fun."

"Oh, yeah? Even when our lovely Reporter Girl will be with us?" Finn asked slyly.

Logan snorted. "Tough chance there."

"Why not? After all, you talked her into skipping a few classes only this morning, right?" Colin asked, raising his eyebrows.

"That's not the same," Logan protested.

"Oh, no? And why so?" Colin inquired further.

"It just is!" Logan said, cringing. Even he had to admit that this response was pretty lame.

"Unbeatable argument," Finn sarcastically commented. "But just so you know: she won't have a chance to refuse."

Suspiciously, Logan narrowed his eyes. "What exactly are you planning to do?"

Finn looked over his shoulder at him, grinning. "Tradition, Logan. Do I need to say more? Now, would at least one of you kindly go get me those thermo bottles?"

Neither Colin nor Logan made any attempts to do that. "So, you still not coming?" Colin asked.

Logan bit his lips. Great, he was here now, sitting in the trap. No way would he let those two idiots go kidnap Rory without him. And hell, the way she had told it yesterday, it may even be quite nice – despite the freezing cold and the two idiots. But if he said now that he would go with them after all… He'd never hear the end of it!

Finn snorted. "Of course, he'll come. No way will our mate here pass on the opportunity to spend some more time with our girl. Not to mention that as possessive as he is with her he surely won't let _his Ace_ go out alone with two extremely handsome and great guys, even if they only are his best friends, right Logan?"

But then, Logan doubted that there was much left of his face to save after the whole bike/shower thing. He sighed. "When do we leave?"

"Give me another hour, then I should have everything ready," Finn said with a nod and Logan would have bet that his friend exerted a lot of effort not to giggle like a little girl right now. Colin on the couch at least had no such qualms about laughing. And they were right. It _was_ ridiculous.

Shaking his head, Logan moved to the door. "I need to change. Just come by when you're ready."

He didn't wait for any answers and quickly left, going back to his own room, having no illusions about the fit of laughter his friends probably broke out into right now. Really, Ace sure was slowly turning to be the ruin of his reputation.

* * *

When there was pounding on his door, Logan was already longingly waiting for it. Though he had waited until the last moment to dress he was sweating like a pig because of the layers of clothing he was wearing. Grumpily, he got up from the couch and went over to the door to open it.

"About time you showed up. What took you so long?" he wanted to know and turned to his left, bending down to pick up a box. Without explaining, he pushed it into Colin's arms.

"Hey? What…"

"I advise you to save your breath," Logan told him, bend again to pick up a second box with a groan and shoved it to Finn, not caring at all that he was already carrying a bulging, heavy looking backpack over his shoulder, nor about the fact that he had just handed him the heaviest box. He sure deserved it.

"Uff," Finn groaned, suddenly trying to catch his breath because of the shock of the heavy load given to him.

Not losing any more time, Logan grabbed his jacket, wallet and keys and then pushed the third and last box out of the suite so he could lock it after him. Then, he picked up his own box – of course the lightest of them all – still heavy enough though.

"Okay, let's go," he said and turned to head outside.

"Care to tell us what this is all about?" Colin wanted to know, aggravated.

"Uff…" was all Finn managed to muster.

Logan shrugged – well, as much as what was possible with the box in his arms. "Those are the books Ace bought this morning. They got delivered late this afternoon."

"Three boxes of books?" Colin asked incredulously. "Did she leave any books back in the store?"

Logan said nothing, but his spirits sure lifted with each complaint Colin muttered. And Colin had a lot more to say.

"And why are they at your place anyway? Did they get the wrong address? Couldn't you have told them to bring the boxes over to her place? Why do we need to play pack-horses here? God, how many books did that lunatic buy? I'm sure this weights at least a ton!"

"Uff…"

Logan smiled, his step gaining bounce, despite the load he was carrying.

* * *

"Uff…" Finn still hadn't found any other word.

"Uff…" panted Colin, his rant having been over after half of the way.

Still smiling, Logan sandwiched his box between himself and the wall and knocked on Rory's door.

And knocked again.

And knocked some more.

"Uff..." his friends groaned once again.

Logan knocked again – or rather said pounded on the door. He was just about to knock again, when the door finally was pulled open – by none other than his very annoyed Ace, giving the perfect image of a spit of fire – were it not for the pink pajamas with kittens on it that she was wearing. "What?" she hissed, glaring at the jerks that dared to pound on her door a little after eleven pm.

Sporting a grin the size of Texas, Logan smirked. "Manners, Ace. You really need to work on them."

"What are you doing here?" she wanted to know, her eyes turning to slits.

"First of all, as cute as your wardrobe is, I doubt it's the appropriate attire to welcome your visitors. Then there's the tone. Polite and cheerful, Ace, that's how you want to sound. And last but not least, you shouldn't keep your guests waiting outside in the cold," Logan lectured her with laughing eyes.

"Goodnight, Logan," Rory icily told him, making attempts to close the door again.

"Logan!" Colin hissed from behind him.

"Hold on, Ace. Don't you want your books?" Logan quickly asked, knowing that that would gain them entrance.

"My books?" she asked, her eyes, for the first time, looking at the boxes the boys were carrying.

Logan nodded. "And as they're not exactly lightweights here it would really be nice if you could let us in with your booty."

"And you couldn't have brought them over at a godlier hour?" Rory wanted to know with a frown, but stepped back to finally let them in.

"Just grabbed the opportunity," Logan said and entered first. Not waiting for further instructions, he headed directly to the open door of her room and put his box down there, Colin and Finn following him.

"Uff…" Finn muttered as soon as he had set the box down. Straightening up again, he glared at Logan. "That's it. I'm definitely not going to be a pack-horse. Never ever."

"I second that," Colin panted with a nod.

"Well, thanks boys. But could you please leave now? I want to go to bed," Rory asked them, looking sternly at them.

"'Course we could. We won't though. Come on, we're running a bit late 'cause of that ton of books Logan forced us to carry over. Go get dressed," Finn answered lightly, throwing himself onto the couch.

"Late? Dressed?" Rory repeated, confused and looked from Finn to Logan. "What is he talking about?"

"Hey, don't look at me. That's all been Finn's idea, I'm only here because I thought you might need at least one sane person with you," Logan said, holding up his hands.

"Exactly, that's why I'm here. But actually, Logan wasn't quite correct there: technically, it was your idea, so please do us the favor and go get dressed so we can get this madness over with," Colin threw in and sat down beside Finn.

"_My_ idea?" Rory asked perplexed.

"Midnight picnic, love. I've got everything. Well, everything but the cookies but we'll just grab some on the way out," Finn nodded and waved at her. "Come on now, get dressed, please!"

Befuddled, Rory looked from one to the other until her eyes kept staying on Logan. He shrugged. "You know Finn. Believe me, it's easiest to spare your breath and just do as he tells you."

"That's crazy! I can't go out now! Knowing you, I won't get back until dawn and I really have to go to my morning classes after I already missed them today," she protested, once she recovered from her surprise.

"See?" Logan asked, looking at Finn. "Told you."

"Love, you can't break with tradition, now, can you?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. "And look at me: here I am, for the first time that I can remember being happy about the beginning of winter just because of the prospect of that midnight picnic of yours. Now, can you really refuse to introduce me properly into that sacred ritual of yours?"

Amused, Logan watched as Rory's eyes widened and she opened her mouth, but no words came out. Yeah, yeah, Finn could have that effect on people.

"But… sleep. I need sleep. If you'd ever seen me without sleep you'd know that. And no," she quickly said when she saw Finn opening his mouth, "I can't just sleep in."

She had barely finished, when there was suddenly coming a loud bang from Paris' room, followed by a muffled groan. A slight pause, then came a laugh. "Now you show me, tiger!" Paris' voice was heard loudly and clearly.

While Rory turned beet red and glared at the closed door, the boys started to grin – and it only grew when a rhythmic banging sound soon followed, accompanied by the occasional moans.

"Hmm, looks like you'll have lots of sleep tonight," Logan remarked sarcastically, not even bothering to suppress the laughter.

"Paris!" Rory yelled frustrated.

"Shut up, Gilmore! I'm having an orgasm here!"

"Yeah, in front of an audience!" Rory shouted back.

"Just because you aren't getting some since bag guy dumped you, doesn't mean that you have to spoil my fun. Just… Oh God! You tiger, you!"

So red that a tomato would get envious, Rory's eyes briefly darted to the cracking up boys before she looked down. "Just give me five minutes," she mumbled, resigned. Something like a growl sounded out of Paris' room and she made a face. "Make that three."

"Oh, no hurry at all, love, no hurry at all," Finn told her grinning, wriggling his eyebrows.

Rory threw him a glare and vanished inside her room, leaving the boys to enjoy the sounds coming from the other room. When Rory appeared two minutes later, covered in layers of clothing, the sounds had grown rather wild and they sure had heard quite a show so far.

"Okay, let's go," Rory urged and went over to the door, throwing it open. "I'm leaving, Paris," she called out and then glared demandingly at the boys.

"You know, we could wait a little bit longer. The final showdown should come any minute now I think," Finn asked, looking pleadingly at her. "Hmm, is this her boyfriend in there? Because if not, I wouldn't mind having my turn in there, you know?"

Rory just intensified her glare and pointed outside. Sighing sadly, Finn got up and followed Colin over to the door. Logan too moved over, but the next words that came out of Paris' room, this time uttered by the guy she was with, made him stop dead in his tracks,.

"Let me have it, Amazon goddess!"

He knew that voice. Wasn't that… Paling, he stared at Rory. "Is that _Doyle_ in there?" he asked, aghast.

Impatiently, Rory pointed outside. "He likes to come out to get something to drink when he's finished. You want to risk seeing him clad in Paris' pink bathrobe?"

Suddenly, Logan wanted to get out of her dorm hastily.

* * *

"Love, I'm officially a fan of this midnight picnic tradition now!" Finn slightly slurred, putting an arm around Rory.

"You love every excuse for drinking, Finn," Colin mentioned, patting the Australian on his back.

"True. Doesn't mean though that I don't love this here. I find myself starting to like the winter and that's only because our love here showed me just how nice snow and coldness can be," Finn protested. "We just have never done it right. So, from now on, be assured that I will hold this tradition in honor of the first snow and will pass it along to my followers and the next generations."

"Please, don't tell us you'll get us out into the freezing night of first snow every time now," Colin pleaded, making a face.

"Don't tell me you don't like it here as well!" Finn demanded loudly.

"Yes, Colin, don't you like it?" Rory asked with a smile, turning her baby blue eyes on him.

Rolling his eyes, Colin sighed. "Well, it is kind of nice," he acknowledged eventually.

"I knew it!" Finn exclaimed triumphantly.

"Just nice?" Rory asked, sounding hurt.

Logan laughed. "Believe me, Ace, that's the most you can get from him. Our Colin here does tend to be a little on the pessimistic side."

"Never would have guessed," Rory smirked.

"Hey! Is that the thanks that I get when I let you have the last cookie?" Colin asked, looking reproachfully at Rory.

Finn snorted. "Please… you only gave her the cookie because you know what was best for you."

"It was still nice of you, though," Rory nodded, nibbling at said last cookie.

"So, Ace… after Finn told us in every detail the many good things he suddenly starts to see in winter, Colin's and mine rather short lists in comparison, when will you tell us your good moments with snow?" Logan asked quietly, looking at the girl beside him.

"Yeah, love, time for your fairy tale," Finn nodded, patting her shoulder.

"It's only fair," Colin agreed as well.

"Hey, like I've told you, that's more my Mom, not me!" Rory pointed out, taking another bite of her cookie.

"Ace," Logan warned.

She shrugged. "Really, there's not much on my side. According to my Mom I took my first steps while it was snowing. That's about summarizes it. Unless you count the fact that I brought my grandparents a frozen pizza to eat during a snowstorm and I was stuck in Hartford as a memorable event, then, that's it. Oh, they even ate it with their fingers!"

"Emily and Richard? Sorry, Ace, that's not a story we'll buy before seeing proof," Logan laughed, shaking his head.

"Believe whatever you want," Ace told him, raising her nose higher into the air.

"But that hardly can be all? Come on, what are you holding out on us here?" Colin probed.

Chuckling, Rory shook her head and gazed up at the trees, all white with snow. "Come on, I'm still very young. Most of my life, I just go to school and believe me, nothing thrilling happened there around this time of year. Apart from the moments with my Mom, there's not really much." She turned her head slightly to glance at Logan before she looked again at the beautiful snowed-in forest scenery where Finn had driven them to. "Of course, there's the time now when some extremely generous rich boy decided on a whim to offer me a book treat which I had no qualms accepting after having been issued with a wonderful new rule that will make my life so much more happy."

Thankful for the darkness that hid his blush, Logan's eyes briefly glanced at his friends. He hadn't told them that he had bought her all the books they had carried over to her dorm. Because he knew he'd never get to hear the end of it. And sure enough, there were already smirks forming on his friends' faces.

"And the time when three crazy guys come to my dorm to whisk me away in the middle of the night for a midnight picnic," Rory softly continued and glanced at the boys. "Thanks for that by the way."

"Awww, no, no, I think it's more appropriate that we need to thank you here, love," Finn said with all seriousness.

"Finn's right. It's really… something special. Thanks Rory. We don't get to live such a peaceful experience very often," Colin added, as serious as Finn.

"That's sad," Rory said quietly.

Uncomfortably with where this was heading too, Logan smirked. "Definitely better than to stay back in your dorm and listen to Paris and _Doyle_," he summarized, shuddering a little. "Really, how can you stand that? It's gross. I mean, _Doyle_."

"By turning blind and deaf," Rory answered with a laugh. "But then, after four years of being friends with Paris I kind of got used to it. Believe me, this is rather harmless."

"Doyle naked in the next room is harmless?" Logan asked incredulously and shook his head. "Okay, I don't think I can take the rest then."

"Wimp," Finn commented dryly.

"He's not _your_ editor Finn," Logan pointed out and shuddered again. Seriously, how was he supposed to even look at Doyle in the eyes and keep a straight face?

"Uh, before you two break out in a fight, I want to say that I'm kind of cold," Colin intervened.

Rory nodded as she put the last bit of the cookie into her mouth. "Colin's right. With the grog and the hot cocoa gone it's really getting a bit freezing. It's time to head back."

"Already? But we just arrived!" Finn whined.

"We've been here for almost three hours!" Rory clarified. "You should never unnaturally stretch out a midnight picnic."

"No fun!"

Rory wriggled out, being sandwiched between Finn and Logan, stood up, and looked sternly at Finn. "Up, Finn! If you come nicely with us now I'm going to tell you all the many special events we have in Stars Hollow. We have plenty."

Logan got up as well, groaning. "Please, Ace, think about the poor world. It can hardly support more of a partying Finn."

Finn quickly jumped up from the bench. "Already too late for that. So, love, please start," Finn told Rory.

But Rory shook her head. "Uh, uh. Not now. How can I know you'll behave all the way back? I don't trust you, Finn."

Finn pouted, but got ignored as the rest of them quickly picked up their things.

"Not fair," he muttered and followed them back to his car.

"I'll meet up with you in a bit," Logan said to Colin and Finn after they had excited the car, making it clear that he didn't want them to come along.

"I'm sure you will," Finn said smirking.

Rory shook her head, exasperated. "Does it even make sense to mention that I don't need anyone to bring me home or should I just save my breath?"

"Save your breath," chorused all three boys.

"Right," she sighed and turned to Finn and Colin, surprising both of them with a quick hug. "Thanks Finn. That was really something," she said quietly to the Australian and Logan had to grin when he saw that Finn actually seemed to blush.

"Same time next year," Finn promised after a moment. "Come on, Colin. I'm ready to kill to get out of this coldness."

The two left and Logan and Rory turned to walk over to the Branford House silently. Logan had no idea why Rory didn't say a word, but he damn well knew why he found himself without any words. It wasn't so much that after the quiet time in the woods they just spent together it seemed more appropriate, that was probably part of the reason, but the main reason for him was because he was nervous. Definitely a novelty for him. He never was nervous around girls. And he definitely was never nervous about asking a girl out.

But that was exactly how he felt right now. Perhaps it was because he wasn't sure if she'll say yes. Not something he had to fear usually either. In fact, most girls practically threw themselves at him and he never had a reason to complain about that. His Ace though… far, far from doing that. Though lately, she had become a lot more open to him. Hell, she even flirted with him and while he extremely enjoyed that – he was also confused. He had found out over the last few weeks that Rory was one who liked to banter. So was her flirting real flirting or only part of the bantering they had going on between the two of them? Between friends? And if nothing else, they had started to become friends. Well, a new concept for Logan: being friends with a girl. He already had a few of them, though not one of them as close as Colin and Finn were. But it was different with them. Each of those girls he knew since forever, had grown up with them, and had gone to school with them at one point or another. That he could also be friends with a girl he had just met and on top of that had clearly an interest that went far beyond friendship with her was something he hadn't thought was possible. But apparently, it was. And it was for sure complicating things a lot. Without the friendship in the way he was pretty sure that he'd have no problem asking her out. On the other hand, he doubted that Rory would have even considered going out with him before they became friends and she got to knew him a bit better. He remembered well the beginning of their acquaintance after all. And truth be told, he wouldn't like to miss this strange friendship that was developing between them.

Problem was just that, he didn't want just friendship. He wanted to finally kiss those lips and find out if his Ace tasted as good as he thought she would. And he wanted to do a lot more than just kiss.

"Logan?"

"What?" he asked, coming out of his thoughts with a start.

"We're here," Rory said, pointing to the door that was already open to a silent, dark common room.

"Right," he said, slightly embarrassed. "Looks as if you'll get undisturbed sleep now," he mentioned casually.

"Thank God. Not that it matters much for the couple of hours I can get in before I need to get up again," she said and right on cue started to yawn.

Logan smiled. "Well, then go crazy Ace: skip the morning lecture or studying or whatever else you plan to do so early and sleep in until you actually need to get up for your first class."

To his surprise, instead of protesting, she smiled back at him. "Who knows? I might just do that. Though I fear then I'll face the risk of hearing a quick morning romp. Hmm, tough choice."

Laughing, Logan shook his head. "Rather you than me, Ace."

She shrugged. "Oh, well, I probably won't hear them. I'm a deep sleeper. But the risk is there nonetheless," she said and yawned again.

"Okay, I can't watch that any longer. Go to bed, Ace," Logan ordered her in a light tone.

"Probably for the best. Night, Logan," Rory nodded and turned to step into her dorm.

"Hey, Ace?" Logan called out, causing her to look back at him, questioningly. He hesitated. "Night, Ace. Greet the colonel for me," he said after a moment and sighed inwardly.

She grinned. "Will do. Bye," she said for a last time and closed the door after her.

Ridiculous. It was simply absurd. Shaking his head at himself, Logan turned to head back to his own dorm. What the hell had stopped him from asking her out? Why was he feeling so torn? On one side, he desperately wanted her, on the other side, he couldn't even bring himself to ask her out! God, was he in high school or what?

Still angry with himself, Logan went directly over to Finn and Colin. Sure, it would have been nice to shed off a few layers of clothing but Lanny was probably at home and Logan didn't want to disturb him. Though he wasn't having exactly a blast of a time with his roommate, he could have it a lot worse. They respected each other, gave the other enough privacy and mostly went separate ways. From time to time, when Logan planned something at their suite, they would even have some fun time together as Lanny was always invited to such events. As he was invited to Lanny's gatherings also, Logan seldom attended them because he always had a loaded social schedule. Between his friends, his dates and the LDB, Logan had more than enough plans or options for his evenings. But it sure was a fact that he spent a lot more time over at his friends than in his own suite. So it would be no problem to get rid of a few layers of clothing there either.

When he went in, Colin and Finn had already dressed down and were sitting on the couch.

"So you're back," Colin greeted him dryly.

Logan looked curiously at him as he took off his jacket and two pullovers. "Why shouldn't I? I said I would catch up with you, didn't I?"

"Yeah, well sure, but we half expected that later would mean in the morning. What happened? Reporter Girl didn't want to ask you in?" Finn gloatingly asked.

And here they were again. Shaking his head, he didn't bother to give them an answer.

"Seriously, Logan… what are you waiting for? It's clear that Rory's well over that loser," Colin asked, boring his eyes into Logan.

"Back off, Colin," Logan warned, not at all in the mood to talk about it. Not that he had anything to say anyway. It was the exact same question he was asking himself over and over lately after all. And he still hadn't found an answer.

But Colin shook his head. "Logan…"

"Seriously Colin. I don't want to talk about it," Logan interrupted him with a glare.

"Come on, I'd just like to understand what's going on with you! Since the beginning of this year you've been pining for that girl. Now she's free, ready to move on. And it's obvious that she likes you. Now all of a sudden you're pulling back and…" Colin though simply continued.

"I'm not pulling back!" Logan corrected, irritated. Why couldn't Colin just shut up?

"Well you sure aren't proceeding either. But okay, all you do is linger around her and I don't get it! Why don't you just ask her out and get it over with?" Colin finished, not letting Logan out of his eyesight.

Angrily, Logan took off his long-sleeved sweats, refusing to say anything. He didn't want to talk about it, damn it!

"'Cause he's an idiot, that's why," Finn said with a sigh and Logan's head snapped up to glare at him. "Spare yourself the glares here, mate. You're an idiot and you're scared 'cause she's different and you're beginning to get that that means that everything will be different with her. You're realizing that she never can be one of your bed bunnies 'cause she sure as hell isn't the type for that. Oh no, she's a girlfriend and that's what makes you running around like a scared chicken. And while that's fun to watch it's also starting to get boring. Especially if it's turning you into the obnoxious mate you've been lately."

"You think so?" Logan sneered.

"I don't only think so, I know so," Finn answered calmly.

"You're wrong," Logan told him darkly.

Throwing up his arms, Finn got up and went over to the house bar. "Whatever. Just let me tell you one more thing and then we can end this topic for tonight. It would be a shame to end that nice picnic with a fight after all, wouldn't it?"

"Why say more at all then?" Logan asked sarcastically.

"Because it needs to be said," Finn patiently explained while he poured a drink. He took the glass and brought it over to Logan to push it into his hand.

Logan stared at the drink whose smell alone told him just how strong it was and then back to Finn, almost dreading what his friend had to tell him.

As soon as his eyes met Finn's, Finn nodded. "Shit or get off the pot, mate," he said seriously, turned and went back to the couch where he flopped down, grabbed the remote and turned on the television. Beside him, Colin stared from Finn to Logan, back to Finn, grinned and with a nod, turned his attention onto the television as well.

Dumbfounded, Logan stared at his friends. Great. Another one of Finn's crazy aphorism! Just great.

_Shit or get off the pot?_

* * *

True to his word, Finn didn't say another word about Rory, not for the rest of that night, not the next day, not once over the weekend and Monday was already over and he still would talk about everything and nothing about Rory. Colin did the same. They didn't need to. The six words kept haunting Logan until he thought he would go crazy.

Shit or get off the pot… Ha!

It wasn't just this little sentence that haunted Logan. It was everything Finn and Colin had said, most of all Finn's though. His friend was wrong: he wasn't scared of asking Rory out. He just hadn't decided yet if it was a good idea to go out with a girl like Rory. Besides, he was having pretty much fun with her as a friend right now and was happy at exploring this new experience a bit more. If the moment was to come to ask her out he'd do it – and if it didn't come, fine as well. So what if he got lost more and more in her eyes whenever he looked into them? So what if her lips looked sweeter and sweeter every time he would see her. This way he had more time to admire her. So what if there has been no night without him having very adult dreams, with his Ace starring in them no matter if he slept with another girl? So what if some innocent gesture or flippant comment of hers could give him a hard-on in an instant? He was a hot-blooded man after all. If he wouldn't show any reaction to a beautiful girl like Rory he'd have to seriously question his sexuality.

"Reality calls for Logan Huntzberger to return to this realm and give the great Finn attention please, before he gets any complexes!"

"What?" Logan asked, coming out of his thoughts to see that Finn and Colin were standing in front of him.

"Here I am, telling you about the love of my life for at least five minutes and you haven't listened to a word I've said! Now tell me you haven't acknowledged my presence here at all because I'm really going to be crushed," Finn whined.

"Please, don't: remember, you're not the one who lives with him," Colin pleaded, sitting down beside Logan. "Him moping around the common room is insufferable."

Logan snickered. "I've seen it, thanks. And it's been one of the rare moments I was actually thankful that Dad refused to let me live with you two," he said with a sigh.

Colin made a sympathetic face. "And I'd wish my Dad had the same idea as yours."

"Hey!" Finn pouted.

"But then those moments are really very rare. I mean, I can't be of the same opinion as a parent here, now can I?" Logan soothed his friend – but couldn't stop himself from grinning though.

"No, you really can't," Finn nodded seriously and then sat down on Logan's other side. "Whose turn is it to drive Wednesday? Not mine, that's for sure."

"Not mine either," Colin quickly said.

Logan sighed. "I know, I know, it's my turn."

"Exactly. But you know, I noticed that the only car you've got here is that sardine box of yours. And if I'm correct, Wednesday is the day after tomorrow. So I can't help but wonder when you plan to head out to Hartford to go get the Range Rover. Because I am sure you don't plan to chauffeur at least three people around in that cramped box on wheels?" Finn asked, the threat evident in his voice.

"Three? Who else but you and Colin were supposed to come with me?" Logan teased, raising an eyebrow. They all knew that Finn wasn't particularly fond of the Porsche. "And if it's just the two of you then there's more than enough place there."

"We'll take Rory with us of course," Colin though spoiled the fun. But then, he just was an organization freak. "And Steph isn't sure yet if she wants to ride with the girls or us, as they in turn aren't sure yet if they want to ride with their boyfriends, their dates. Hey, I forgot to ask, how did Rory react to the invitation for the next event?"

"None at all because I haven't given it to her yet," Logan answered.

"Why not?" Colin asked with a frown.

"You know me, I thought it would be more fun this way," Logan said and it was true. His Ace was just adorable when she got surprised.

Finn snorted. "Please! You just wanted to avoid getting a hole bored into your stomach. But as she probably would have drilled holes in all of us with her undoubtedly many question, I'm actually quite grateful for that. That girl sure can interrogate."

Logan made a face. Well, that too. "And it spared us of her tirades that she can't miss a day and a half of school," he added with a grin.

Colin nodded. "Okay, perhaps really quite a wise decision of yours, Huntzberger. But how's she supposed to get her costume in time?"

"It's taken care of," Logan reassured, looking away and braced himself for the comments he was sure would now start to come again.

He was saved though, by none other than the person they were talking about. Relieved, he saw her emerging from the building opposite the bench they sat on, and heading, of course, to the coffee stand a few feet away from them.

"Hey, Ace!" he called out, relieved to escape the comments for a bit more, but also happy to see her. He hadn't seen her since he had dropped her off Thursday night after all.

Startled, she looked up and, once she spotted them, came over. "Hey guys. You finished for today?"

"Finished with what?" Finn asked dumbly.

She rolled her eyes. "Forget I asked," she murmured. "I seriously need some coffee. You want some as well?"

Logan shook his head and raised his cup. "Thanks, this one here is enough," he answered with a smile.

"I'm good, thanks, Rory," Colin refused, too.

"Only if it's ninety percent alcohol and ten percent coffee. You think they serve you that here?" Finn asked.

"I can ask but I wouldn't get your hopes up," Rory said with a laugh and moved over to get her coffee.

"You could give her the invitation now. So we all get to see her face," Colin suggested in a low voice.

"There are still two long days ahead of us," Logan pointed out.

"Perhaps, but then she'll probably spend those days furiously studying to be ahead of the stuff she'll miss while being on the LDB event," Colin reasoned.

"On the other hand she could look forward to it. And go crazy with wonder about where we're going and what we'll do this time," Finn added with a nod. "It's really a shame that her second event had to be one of Robert's," he sighed, making a face. "Not sure how much our love will enjoy this one."

"Enjoy what?" Rory asked as she joined them once again.

Logan elbowed Finn – and got an elbow right back into his side. "This wonderful week of course, love. Lots of relaxing and partying ahead of us!" Finn gracefully clouded the truth.

Making a face, Rory sighed. "Not for me. I need to get all the studying and work for the week done before Thursday morning and then I go back to Hartford, at least for the day, if not longer."

"Whatever for?" Colin asked astonished.

"I need to go to the funeral of my grandfather," Rory answered, taking a sip of her coffee.

Shocked, Logan stared at her. "What? Richard died? When? God, Rory, I'm so sorry!" he gasped, truly upset about the news. Richard was dead? Why hadn't he heard that already? God, poor Rory. He knew that she and Richard were really close, though he had to admit that she looked as if she took it quite well. Actually, she looked more confused than sad.

"What?" she asked, looking puzzled at him.

Huh? "Richard. You said you need to go to your…" he pointed out, not less confused.

"Oh… No, Logan. Not Grandpa! The other one died. The father of my Dad," Rory interrupted him.

"Oh, uh… I'm relie… uh, I'm glad that Richard is okay," Logan quickly corrected himself. "I'm still sorry though."

"Yes, I'm sorry as well," Colin nodded.

Before Finn could give her his condolences as well though, Rory shook her head. "That's nice, but you don't need to be. I met him once and believe me, it's been one of the most unpleasant moments in my life. And from the little I heard about him…" Suddenly, she stopped herself and bit her lip, shaking her head.

Not letting her out of his eyesight, Logan stood up to move over to her and tentatively touch her arm. "Hey," he said softly.

After a long moment, she looked up at him and her eyes were full with confusion and resignation. "It's just… I really wish I wouldn't have to go," she admitted in a low voice.

"Then why go at all?" Colin asked gently. "If you've only met him once and that meeting was as unpleasant as you say it was then surely no one expects you to attend the funeral."

"No, they sure don't. Actually, Dad's mother would probably be more than happy if I'll stay far, far away from it." She sighed and avoided to meet anyone's eyes. "But Dad asked me to. He said though that I don't really need to come but I could tell that he really wanted me there. I kind of get it. He hates those people and now he will have at least one person there that he actually likes and is there for him. And after the way I brushed him off last week it's the least I can do." She looked at Logan. "He came to tell me, you know. But I wouldn't listen."

"You couldn't know," Logan said with determination, a frown forming on his forehead. Surely her father wasn't so mean to blame that on her?

"I know…" she said quietly. After a moment though she straightened up and emptied her cup. "I really need to go now. See you!" Not really waiting for anyone's reaction, she quickly turned to walk away.

"Hey, Rory?" Colin though stopped her. "Who was your grandfather?"

She briefly looked back to them. "Straub Hayden," she answered, turned and left, vanishing around a corner.

Surprised, Colin looked at Logan. "Straub Hayden as in Hayden & Zumwald? _The_ icon on International Law?"

Logan shrugged. "No idea. But do you think there are many people who are named Straub?"

"If that's true…" Colin said.

"I know," Logan nodded.

The name Gilmore alone had secured Rory a fancy place in Hartford's high society – even despite her background of being a child out of wedlock. If you added the name Hayden now – you've got yourself one very popular bachelor girl not few families would like to see as their daughter-in-law. Unbelievable… how was it possible that everyone seemed to have forgotten that it hadn't been just Rory's mother who was from high society?

"She has no idea, hasn't she?" Finn mirrored Logan's thoughts.

"No," Colin shook his head. "And I'm truly amazed by that. They really managed to keep her out of the whole circus for most of her life – on both sides."

"Well, we don't know the details," Finn said with a shrug and stood up. "But this sure takes care of her participation on the next event."

Logan nodded, inwardly sighing. He really had looked forward to giving her the invitation and see her surprise. And he had been looking forward to seeing how she would have acted when she truly participated and not just as a reporter. And perhaps, in the wildness of how the LDB event would turn out to be, he finally would have managed to ask her out.

Or finally get a kiss from her.

But this clearly had to wait now. Poor Rory. He'd been often enough at such gatherings of the high society that he knew that she'd probably be bored out of her mind. There wouldn't be a sub-party as it was a funeral. Not to mention that there hardly would be many persons there that would even remotely be Rory's age. A lot of them would be at the LDB event in fact. The youth thankfully was usually excused from the Hayden's events so chances were slim that the parents expected their offspring to go to that funeral as well. Oh yeah, Rory would have a boring time ahead of her.

* * *

"Okay, that's it! Totally a waste of time! I'll never, ever go to any party Robert organized again!" Finn raged, not for the first time and certainly not for the last, as they entered the pub Thursday evening. "Not even if it's a LDB event."

"It was kind of…" Colin uncomfortably admitted, stopped though before he finished.

"Lame," Logan summarized.

"Boring. Dead boring. We would have had more fun at that funeral Reporter Girl was at than there," Finn darkly said.

"Hmm, I wouldn't be so sure about that," Colin said, nodding to the counter.

Curious, Logan looked over and was surprised to see none other than Rory there – with Paris. And neither of them looked very happy being there. Exchanging a look with his friends, they went a bit closer to them.

"Hey, you!" Paris called out to Rick. "I told you I want something strong. This martini here hardly will make my friend here drunk. But she needs to get drunk. So you better get me some real alcohol here or I'll come get it myself and you won't like it if I need to do that."

"Paris," Rory hissed, clearly unhappy.

"You be quiet. Don't worry, I'll take care of this. You'll be oblivious in no time. And I'll have aspirin ready for you in the morning. Go grab us a table or something. In the back. Some dark corner I think would be appropriate," Paris told her and then glared back at Rick. "What are you waiting for? I told you to get us something strong."

"Look, I can't just make something. I'll need an order. So please, while you decide what you want I have other customers to serve," Rick rather rudely told Paris.

"If you think you can just…"

"Paris!" Rory hissed, tugging at the arm of the furious girl. "Oh, for Pete's sake! All right, all right," she murmured, shaking her head, and then looked at Rick. "A Long Island Tea, a big glass of water and a Red Bull please," she ordered and turned back to her roommate. "You happy now? One of these and I'm as drunk as you'll get me tonight. Then can we please go home?"

"Only if you properly forgot about these idiots and only until then," Paris told her and with a last glare, handed Rick the money as he brought them their drinks. "And what's the water for? Water won't get you drunk. You drink alcohol and that's it."

"That my dear amateur would be a very bad idea," Finn chimed in. "Or she'll need a lot more than a few aspirins in the morning. Like a new head."

"No one asked you," Paris said, rounding on Finn to glare at him.

Finn ignored her and looked with kicked puppy eyes at Rory. "Love! You wanting to get drunk without me? I'm crushed."

Rory blushed and looked embarrassedly at him and Logan and Colin standing next to him. "Not my idea, sorry, Finn."

"You came home all depressed and said you need a drink. So I'm getting you a drink! Doing my duty as your friend, so stop complaining," Paris pointed out. "Now drink so we can get it over with. I do still have some studying to do, you know. And if we spent too much time here my whole schedule is shot to hell."

"Well, let's just go back then," Rory exasperatedly said but obediently took a few tiny sips of her drink, making a face at the strong taste of alcohol. No wonder. She sure had picked one of the best drinks to get drunk within no time.

But Paris shook her head and waved her finger at Rory. "Stop stalling. Pour that Long whatever down."

Shaking her head, Rory looked back at the boys. "You've seen or read the second Harry Potter?"

Only Finn nodded. Rory pointed at herself, "Harry," then at Paris. "Dobby. Do I need to say more?" she asked Finn.

Grinning, Finn shook his head while Logan and Colin just exchanged a confused look.

"Want to tell us why Paris wants to get you drunk, Ace?" Logan finally asked to get the picture. Because he sure didn't understand what was going on here. And since when did his Ace drink Long Island Teas? In the middle of the week on top of that?

"Get lost, Huntzberger. She had enough of your bunch for one day," Paris though told him with a clear warning before Rory even had a chance to say something.

"Paris…" Rory protested.

"What? It's true!"

Realization dawning on him, Logan met Rory's eyes – and saw the hurt in them. Damn it. "I take it the funeral didn't go well?"

"A disaster," she murmured and quickly looked away.

Red hot anger surged through Logan's veins. What had they done to her?

"What happened?" Colin asked concerned.

She shook her head. "Look, I don't want to talk about it. Let's just say that I'm truly amazed that your parents didn't forbid you to even speak with me, let alone spend time with me," she told them bitterly and took a long swallow of her drink. Actually, she downed it all in one, quickly following it with the water. She put the glasses on a nearby empty table and turned to Paris. "Come on, I had my drink as you wanted and now we can go back."

Paris looked suspiciously at her. "You really had enough? You don't look drunk."

"Wait until you see me stumble back to my room," Rory told her and left, not even looking back to see if Paris was following her – or saying her goodbyes to the boys.

Paris grabbed her Red Bull and started to follow her, but Logan risked his life by grabbing hold of her arm and effectively stopping her. "What's that supposed to mean?" he wanted to know.

"You have three seconds to remove your manicured hand off my arm before I chop it off," Paris told him icily.

Taking a deep breath, Logan let her go and took a step back, just to be on the safe side.

Paris nodded, apparently satisfied with his reaction. Then her glare returned though. "What do you think happened, Huntzberger? They basically told her that she's a poor, filthy bastard that ruined her parent's glorious life and tainted both their families' names by her pure existence. Or at least they made her feel that way. Now get out of my way."

No one stopped her this time when she stormed past them after Rory.

"Fuck. This day really sucks," Finn muttered with a thunderous expression and then went over to Rick to order a Long Island Tea for himself as well.

"This shouldn't surprise us," Colin slowly said, unhappily.

"No," Logan shook his head. "It shouldn't. But then, we got to know Rory."

And once you've got to know that sweet, nice girl you couldn't understand anymore how anyone would dare to hurt her in such a way. But then, when did high society ever think about the feelings of anyone? Let alone that of a girl who for many of them was nothing more than a bastard, no matter that they are in the twenty-first century and not in the Middle Age anymore.

"_Now_ I need a drink as well," Logan muttered and went to join Finn. "Make that two," he told Rick.

"Three," Colin corrected.

Soon, the three boys sat at a table in a dark corner, nursing their drinks and pretty much deep in their own thoughts. Logan wasn't sure what Finn and Colin were thinking about. He knew just two things. One, first thing tomorrow, he wanted to hunt someone down to get a more detailed description of what happened at that funeral. Two, he'd prove to Rory that not all of them were such assholes and that he'd prove in words and actions to her that he disagreed with whatever they told and showed her.

After that it was time to make a decision. He could not sidestep and do nothing, not anymore. Finn's crazy proverbial expression kept on reverberating. And Logan was pretty sure that he was going to shit as there was no way that he was getting off the pot.

* * *

tbc!


	7. Censored

**Chapter 7: Censored**

**(Come Home)**

To Logan's dismay it proved that neither part of his plan was easily accomplished. It turned out that all his sources told him basically the same about the funeral: Rory had been there which didn't seem to please Mrs. Hayden much. The coldness between them actually had seemed to make the deep Connecticut winter look like a Caribbean beach. But nothing had happened in public. All everyone can tell was that after the memorial services in the church and burial that followed, Rory had left in the Hayden's limousine together with her father and her grandmother for the funeral feast at the Hayden mansion. As soon as everybody started arriving though, Rory and her dad were leaving. So whatever had happened had been private and the only ones who could tell were those three people and whomever else Rory might have told the whole story. Paris for example seemed to have learned more details. But he knew better than to even try to ask Gellar.

Of course he could have asked Rory. Problem was just that he had hardly seen her over the past three weeks. All of a sudden, she seemed to have become very busy. Whenever he had hunted her down at one of the coffee carts or stands she had had never more time than for a quick hello and some meaningless chat. There had never been, for sure, an opportunity for him to ask about the funeral. It also made the second part of his plan a lot more difficult: show her that not everyone of high society were such assholes. Though he did hope that she knew that already. She had spent quite some time with him and his friends, and, by now, though he was the first to admit that they sure had their moments – especially Colin – they weren't so bad after all. Besides, whatever her grandmother may have told her or despite how some of those people had made her feel like, she was one of them. Unique, yes. Uncommon, yes. Not hundred percent high society, yes. But, the bottom line, she was still one of them: she had the name and the blood, she would have the money and she also had the contacts.

How anyone could forget that or how anyone could even still hold onto their outmoded view of being a child out of wedlock when faced with that wonderful person who is his Ace was beyond Logan. Not to mention that nowadays that really wasn't something that uncommon. Okay, well, perhaps indeed not in high society – but then the new generation had yet to come into the age where the heirs had to slowly take over the family businesses and hence think about settling down. He, of course, knew that the pressure was still too much – but he doubted that more modern ways to live in a relationship wouldn't also become part of the world of the rich. If not already in his generation then for sure in the next. Because he doubted that any of his friends, himself included, would ever turn out to become like their parents. They knew that the way their families still lived and clung to was ancient and out-dated. It was all up to them to change that. At least that was what he hoped they'd achieve at one time when they are the heads of their families and had the say-so while their offspring reached the age he and his friends were now.

They just had to. Because there was no way that he wanted to become like his father.

But then, he often doubted that there was still hope for him. The nearer his graduation was, the more worried he became. After all, he knew that in less than two years he was supposed to take over the business. To settle down. To marry and produce an heir.

"Care to share the deep thoughts you seem to have this fine evening?"

"Huh?" Logan asked, coming out of his thoughts and looked up.

"Is there a reason why you stare at your glass instead of downing the sweet nectar?" Finn asked, inclining his head.

"Nothing," Logan sighed and looked around. They were yet again at the pub, kicking back. Enjoying the time before their life was over, Logan thought bitterly.

"Sure, that's why you're making this sour face. Come, mate, tell Uncle Finn what's in your heart," Finn said, nudging him.

"Let it be, Finn," Logan though shrugged him off.

"No, no, no… I can see you're heading towards a depression. I've seen you depressed and it's one very sad view I'd like to forget but find myself unable to and definitely not something I want to have to witness again. So spit it out, Logan: what's pulling you down this time?" Finn insisted and Logan could see in his eyes that he was serious.

With a sigh, Logan leaned back, finding solace in the dim light of the corner they were sitting in. "Time's running out, Finn," he said quietly after a while.

"Care to elaborate on that, mate?"

"Dad was in town today," Logan told Finn.

Not surprised at all, Finn nodded. "So I've heard. I mean, it was pretty hard to miss the way this wide-eyed, pale guy that resembled you a lot ran scared all over the campus in order to avoid the newspaper mogul that unfortunately is your father." He stopped to look closely at Logan. "So I guess he did corner you after all."

Logan shook his head. "No, he didn't. Didn't stop him from leaving messages though. On my answering machine, on my voice-mailbox, hell, he even left a note in my room."

"Ah… and what did he say?" Finn asked knowingly.

Making a face, Logan shrugged. "Nothing new: Logan, it's time you get your act together. Son, get off your lazy ass. Start taking your studies more seriously. I expect you at the party on Friday so don't even think about skipping it. And I want to see something published within two weeks or else… the same nagging bullshit like always," Logan summarized bitterly, twirling his glass with the golden liquid in it.

"If it's the same as always then why does it bother you so much this time?" Finn asked with a frown.

Damn good question. One, Logan couldn't answer. He shook his head. "Dunno. It's just… lately, these incidents happen more frequently. Dad drops in more often than before. His control over me is tightening up. He forces me to go to more and more of these stupid parties. And I feel like…" He let out a very frustrated sigh.

"Like time's running out," Finn stated, his eyes boring into Logan.

Logan nodded.

"Well, perhaps. All the more reason to P. A. R. T. Y!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Finn exclaimed, raising his glass and knocking it back. "Come on, Logan. Enjoy it while you still can. And let me tell you mate, staring sadly into your glass is hardly celebrating your carefree life."

"Not in the mood tonight," Logan murmured, taking a sip of his whiskey.

"Not in the mood for what?"

Startled, both boys turned to see Rory standing in front of their corner, looking curiously at Logan.

"Ace?" he asked, blinking.

He hadn't had this much to drink – but that surely couldn't be his Ace. Not only that Rory had made herself rare since the last time she was at the pub, she for sure hadn't been anywhere remotely fun in the past few weeks. Not that Logan had expected that. She had a ton to study, as she had told him every single time they've met briefly. Funny thing was that he even believed her: that she really was burying herself in work and did not in fact avoid Logan and the guys. The reason why she buried herself in work though was an altogether other story.

But there she stood, giving him a weird look as she stepped closer. "Why is he acting as if I'm a fata morgana?" she asked Finn.

"I believe that may be because a fata morgana appearing here would be more likely than you actually being here all by yourself," Finn answered grinning and moved closer to her to sling an arm around her. "You do know that you're in the pub, right, love?"

"Hmm, I think the bar tables, the music, all the people and the booze are a dead giveaway," Rory answered with an eyeroll.

"True, true, nowhere else could you find such an endearing atmosphere," Finn agreed and looked with raised eyebrows at her. "I can't imagine anyone not wanting to be here as much as possible. Yet here I am, wondering if you've got lost on the way home from the library or some study group or something like that."

"I've been here before, you know? We've even met here before," Rory pointed out, looking up at Finn and inclining her head.

"We have?" Finn asked surprised.

Shaking her head, she looked over at Logan who was still staring at her speechlessly. "Is he serious?"

Slowly, a grin started to spread out on Logan's face. "You never know with him."

"Hmm… ever thought about using him for experiments? Might get fascinating results," Rory suggested and looked around. "So… where is stooge number three?"

Logan raised an eyebrow. "If you mean Colin, he's otherwise occupied this evening."

"A date?" Rory asked, smiling. "Someone I know?"

Finn smirked. "Doubt it, love. Colin's usual gals and you don't exactly circle in the same hemisphere."

"Should I take that as a compliment or as an affront?" Rory asked suspiciously.

"Only a compliment of course," Finn hurried to assure her while Logan nodded with a grin. Colin hasn't exactly a high standard when it comes to the girls he went out with for his bit of release.

"So, you finally gonna tell us how this bar got so lucky to receive the honor of your presence tonight?" Logan asked, truly wondering what might have brought Rory here. Especially as Finn was right: he couldn't see Marty or Paris or anyone else who seemed to accompany her. But why would Rory go to the pub alone?

"Actually, I came here looking for you," Rory told them, looking at Logan. "I tried over at your place, but no one opened. Then I figured out, hey, it's evening, now, where could the three stooges be on a normal weekday night? And blup, there I had my answer," she said, waving at the surrounding.

"So predictable, huh?" Logan remarked with a smile, wondering though why she wanted to see him. Not that he had any complaints about that. In fact, none at all.

Rory nodded. "Pretty, yeah. You should work on that Huntzberger. So... Here I am."

"So, here you are," Logan repeated and looked into her eyes. "Looking for me, huh? I knew you'd come running sooner or later, Babe," he drawled with a grin.

Her eyes narrowed and she looked up at Finn who still had an arm draped over her shoulder. "I see you still haven't managed to get those hallucinations of him under control."

"Sorry, love. We tried our best. But I fear that his case here is truly hopeless," Finn immediately agreed. "Such a shame. He's so young and he would have had such a brilliant future. It's really heartbreaking to watch." He shook his head, looking heartbroken.

Rory patted his hand sympathetically before she looked back at Logan. "One more stupid remark like that and I'll remind him of a certain party theme, _Master and Commander_," she warned, smiling. "During the day when he's sober. I'll even make him a note," she added when Logan started to open his mouth.

"What theme?" Finn asked, suspicious immediately, looking from Rory to Logan.

"Nothing," Logan hurried to say. He was eternally grateful that neither Colin nor Finn had remembered the Gladiator-themed party and he surely didn't want them to remember. "You were telling me why you wanted to see me so desperately that you even set foot in here," he addressed Rory again.

Smiling, Rory nodded, but then grew serious. "Okay, first of all, don't kill the messenger," she warned.

Now that wasn't a promising opening. Not at all. "And why would I want to kill the messenger?" he wanted to know with a frown.

"Because I come bearing grave news in form of work heading towards your way," Rory carefully answered as Finn, gasping, let his arm drop from her shoulders to push her onto a chair before sliding back onto his seat.

Logan's frown deepened. "What?"

Rory sighed. "Look, Doyle was in a bit of a mess when I was in the newsroom earlier today," she began to explain and it began to dawn on Logan just what caused her to come looking for him. "Turned out that he had just received a visit from a certain media mogul." Oh yeah, it was exactly what Logan had thought. "And as his pitiful sight was so gross and sad at the same time, not to mention that I may remind you that _I_ am the roommate of his current fuck buddy and hence can't avoid seeing him as he seems to like it at our place, I may have found myself offering some help to get Doyle avoid having a heart attack."

"Help?" Logan asked suspiciously, sharing a glance with Finn who just shook his head and took a deep swallow of his drink before signaling to the waitress for another round. "What help? And what has that got to do with me?" he asked, though he was pretty sure just from where this wind was blowing.

"Yeah, help," Rory nodded and took a deep breath before she met Logan's eyes, somewhat reluctantly. "Your father blames Doyle for your not having published anything in the newspaper this year yet. Now, we all know here that this isn't Doyle's fault, right?" Rory asked, looking meaningful at Logan. "Right. So Doyle mentioned that he gave you an assignment a while back. I may have thought that you being you know that the news we make over at the paper are called news because they are actually recent happenings in the world – or at least in our small world here at campus. But I could have been wrong of course," she acknowledged with a shrug. "Anyway, Doyle though, the fantastic editor he is, was wise enough to give you an assignment that covered a topic that wouldn't grow old like usual news do. I mean, Professor Warrick's not gone yet and the student body is still in quite of an uproar over it – actually making an article all the more interesting just because there is still so much protest heard and not fading like it usually is the case but even getting more and more support, showing just how much the assistant professor is liked around here. Now, we figured that you, with all the potential and talent you have in your blood, must have foreseen this and that's why you haven't handed in your article yet. I gotta say, great instinct you've got there," Rory said, smiling sweetly at him. "Congratulations for that by the way. Now, I know of course that the _great _Logan Huntzberger barely needs help with his article, but you know, Doyle was such a mess that he momentarily forgot about that and before he started to flip out totally I may have mentioned to him that I've just finished with my article about the dissatisfaction of the faculty with the tenure system and that I still have the ton of notes I collected for it and that surely there was one or two information somewhere in there that could also be of use to you and may be getting you a kick to start with your article – if you hadn't done that already. Doyle found the idea great, so here I am," Rory finally finished, making a slight bow.

For a long moment, Logan and Finn just stared at her. Logan pretty much annoyed, Finn admiringly. And it was Finn who recovered first to jump up and bow in front of Rory. "My God, you're good," he exclaimed in awe.

Logan threw him a dark glare. He had yet to agree after all. The nerve of his father! To go through Doyle and Rory to get back at him! Un-fucking-believable! "That's a joke, right?" he asked bitterly.

Even his Ace!

Rory sighed. "Come on Logan. It's not that bad. Okay, I get that you're not on the paper on your free will. Okay, I get that you don't like to be forced into something like this. But it's just one article, Logan. One article and I bet you'll have some peace again, not to mention that Doyle will have peace as well, something I would be immensely grateful for." She stopped, but when Logan didn't answer, she continued. "I don't see where the problem is? Doyle mentioned that you're actually a real good writer. You have, apart from some misguidance, a real good taste and knowledge of books and journalism so I actually believe that. So what's one teeny weeny article written by you? Take my notes, speak with some of your undoubtedly many contacts both in the faculty as well as the student body and write it." She waited another beat, her eyes boring into Logan. "Or perhaps Doyle exaggerated and you're not as good as he says you are. Wouldn't be the first time after all. Is that it, Huntzberger? Is it too hard for you to write more than the little mysterious notes for the Brigade?"

Letting out a jubilant laugh, Finn fell down to his knees to bow to Rory again. "Truly the best! Hail to the best!"

Grumpily, Logan glared at him again, then at Rory. Finn was right. She was good. She knew exactly how to give him the right mixture of conscience and taunting to get him to agree to her proposition. Knew exactly how to bring him to write that damn article. Damn it all to hell. "Watch it Gilmore. When and where?" he grudgingly demanded to know.

Smiling triumphantly, Rory nodded eagerly. "Tomorrow at five in the newsroom," she suggested.

No way. He may have had to give in but there was no way that he'd let her gloat her victory in public – and in front of Doyle. Actually, when he was forced to this anyway, then he could as well have a little fun while doing it – and make her suffer at least a little for what she had gotten him into. Oh yeah, that he'd do! A smile forming, he shook his head. "Uh uh, Ace. Already got plans then. Here, eight pm," he suggested.

"Here?" she asked with a frown.

Logan nodded, grinning. "Take it or leave it. I think you have a way bigger interest in Doyle's mental condition than I have."

"Fine, fine, fine. I'll meet you here at eight then," Rory gave in.

Content, Logan nodded. "It's a date, Ace."

Amused, he watched as she blushed a little at the mention of a date while casting an unsure glance his way. "Uh, yeah. Well, now that's settled I better go," she said and quickly hopped down from her chair.

Finn's arm shot out and he captured her hand in his. "Whoa, whoa, whoa… why so fast, love? Now that you're already here you could give us lonesome hunks some company? We'll even invite you, right, mate?"

Shaking her head, Rory tried to wriggle her hand out of Finn's big hands. "Though that offer's awfully nice I have to pass. Another time, Finn."

"Aww come on! You can't let us be stranded here! Without Colin here, we need someone sensible around to keep an eye on us. What if we land out there in the dark, cold night, lying naked and unconscious in the snow because we got robbed down to our shirts?" Finn pleaded. "That would be your fault then."

"Colin's the sensible one?" she asked doubtfully, but then shook her head again. "No, Finn, really, I can't."

"You better agree to a drink, Ace. Believe me, it's not worth arguing with Finn when he's so determined," Logan told her with a chuckle.

"Listen to the man here!" Finn nodded with vehemence.

She sighed. "Look, I really can't. I ought to be over at Little Vienna in half an hour. If I drink something with you now I'm going to be late and I don't want to be late. So please, Finn, rain check, okay?"

"You've got a date?" Logan asked with a frown before he could stop himself. She wasn't supposed to have a date. In fact, no one was supposed to even ask her out! True, he didn't have much opportunity to pursue her in the past few weeks but he sure as hell hadn't lifted his claim on her yet. If he found out who that guy was…

"Just my Dad," Rory immediately calmed him down, though.

Her dad? "How is he?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Had had better times. Apparently there's really a lot to be taken care of when someone dies. Okay, see you tomorrow. Bye, Finn!" she said, finally freeing her hand out of Finn's hand and, with a last smile at them, hurried outside.

"Well, well, so you've finally got yourself a date with the lovely Reporter Girl," Finn commented after a moment. "'bout time."

Logan frowned. "It's not a date. You've heard her: it's just for the paper." He made a face. "She's just doing Doyle a favor."

Finn rolled his eyes and sighed. "I did mention that you're stupid, right?"

"Finn…" Logan warned, not wanting to get into a fight tonight. Especially as Colin wasn't here to play referee.

Finn held up his hands. "All I'm saying is that she didn't need to offer to help you. Nor did she need to agree to meet with you, at an obvious 'date' time also. She could have just dropped by and leave her notes at your apartment or something like that. But she didn't. She went to an awful lot of trouble to corner and nail you here in a truly admiring way. She set a date with you, one that has excellent prospects of turning into a real date, given the place and time. Not to mention that she flirted with you the whole time she was here, in that cute, innocent way of hers." He sighed. "And I gotta admit, you're one lucky bastard for that. So, now I see my future wife. If you'll excuse me." His eyes fixed on a redhead at the counter, Finn got up and headed towards her, leaving Logan to his thoughts.

Hmm… perhaps Finn was right. Perhaps this date with Rory tomorrow was more than just a casual meeting to exchange some notes.

Perhaps, it was a date after all.

That thought made his heart beat faster. His father and the pressure on his life forgotten, Logan sipped at his drink, smiling.

* * *

"I really don't know what's wrong with girls nowadays but I tell you, it's bad, bad, bad," Colin finished his story about his date from last night. "No sense of class at all. And it's simply impossible to have a decent talk with them. Whenever they open their mouth it just hurts, you know?"

"Mate, not that I don't agree with you at all – but really, what do you expect if you go out with a girl who's called Bunny?" Finn asked grinning, shaking his head. "Not the girls are, you're the problem, Colin, and it is your standard. You want class and intelligence; you've got to stop picking up girls from bars or from showbiz. Go to the library. Pick up one of the girls from your study groups. Hell, just go to the cafeteria and you'll find even in the dumbest girl there have more brain than in girls like Funny."

"Bunny," Colin corrected and then made a face. "And no thank you. They're not my type."

"You mean you're not their type," Finn clarified.

"Hey! I could have any girl I wanted there!" Colin immediately insisted, glaring at Finn. "They'd just cause more trouble than they'd be worthy of."

Finn laughed. "Was that Lonny girl at least good in bed?" he leered.

"Hell, yeah," Colin grinned smugly.

"So why are you complaining, mate? It's all that counts in the end," Finn concluded, sharing the smug grin.

Colin shrugged. "Yeah… but the entire time until we got to her place was just one never ending pain. I'm just asking myself if there couldn't be more in the whole pre-fun phase of a date." He thoughtfully played with his pen and looked at Logan. "What do you think, Huntz?"

"What?" Logan asked with a start, feeling like a deer-caught-in-the-headlights. Truth was that he had only listened with half an ear to Colin's description of his date as his mind was pre-occupied and entirely focused on another date – his date with Rory that evening. Actually, he had found it nearly impossible to concentrate on anything other than the date so far.

Shaking his head, Colin gave him a weird look. "Okay, what's going on? All day you've been elsewhere with your thoughts. And you're awfully fidgety. What's the matter? Mitchum threatening to drop in again? Got a call from an old conquest to tell you that you're going to be a daddy?"

"Don't. Even. Joke. About. This!" Logan warned him, shuddering.

His eyes lightening up, Finn hooked his arm around Colin. "Oh no, Colin - it's way better: our dear friend here is nervous." He grinned as he wriggled his eyebrows at Logan. "I thought I'd never see the day the great Huntzberger is nervous about a date."

Logan glared at him. "I'm not nervous. And I'm not fidgety either for that matter," he protested grumpily.

Colin looked from Finn to Logan and back and raised an eyebrow. "Date? What date?" he asked with a frown and then narrowed his eyes. "Okay, guys, what did I miss?"

"Oh, much my pitiful friend," Finn said, his grin widening. "You see, last night, we went out to the pub where I had fun and our pitiful mate here was nursing his drink, all depressed about the usual heir thing you know. But boy did that change when no other than the most lovely Reporter Girl showed up in the pub, searching for our knight here."

"Rory?" Colin asked surprised. "Really? _Rory_ went to the pub?" He looked questioningly at Logan.

"Yeah, she did. You'll never guess why she went to the trouble searching for our mate here so I'll enlighten you right away: She came to offer her help with an article to no one else than Logan Huntzberger, leaving him no choice but to accept." Finn snickered. "Hehe, you should have seen her! First class! So our mate here not only finds himself having to write an article for the next edition now, without being sick or bored might I add, but also with a date with our love for this evening to receive her notes that she offered to lend him in order to help him with his article."

A grin breaking out on his face, Colin looked at Logan again. "Seriously? Damn! I wish I had been there!"

Finn nodded. "Yeah, you really missed quite a show yesterday. Not to mention that every trace of depression of course was gone as soon as she had to leave. All of a sudden our mate here was once again the party tiger we know and love and seriously missed since our girl made herself rare."

"Are you finished now?" Logan asked through gritted teeth.

"No, of course not!" Finn denied and winked at Colin. "The best is yet to come as you can see. Our mate here, the great Logan Huntzberger, the Coolio who had his first date at a tenderly age of eleven with a fourteen years old vixen and never showing even the slightest trace of nervousness, our Stick here who nailed his very first woman with ease and confidence at fifteen, the Casanova who never since said first time had gone without having sex at least once per week, this incomparable Logan Huntzberger is now nervous as hell to go to a date that only has the potential to turn out to be a date date." He sighed, even when his grin got bigger some more if that was possible at all. "I thought I'd never see the day," he said once again, shaking his head.

"I am not nervous!" Logan denied, seething. "And what do you mean? Last night you said it's definitely a date!"

Now grinning as wide as Finn, Colin laughed. "Oh yeah, Finn. It finally happened: Logan here cares enough about some girl that he's actually nervous. I bet there are butterflies dancing in his stomach as we speak."

"They better dance the Rumba – Salsa or Lambada are way too dirty for our girl – at least for tonight's date," Finn nodded seriously before a leer appeared on his face again. "Though I have no doubt that our lovely Reporter Girl will turn out to be one hell of a Vulcan in bed – bookish girls like her usually are." He frowned. "Not that I know from personal experience. Never had the guts to ask one out – but then, few redheads are bookish. But hey, if you'll get extremely lucky tonight you might be able to confirm that to us tomorrow, right Logan?"

Grinding his teeth together even harder, Logan got up and collected his things together. "I'm not nervous. I don't have butterflies. And I sure as hell won't tell you two idiots anything, ever again, even if something will happen which I doubt because all I'm doing is meeting a colleague, exchanging a few notes and perhaps, perhaps we'll chat a little afterwards. Now if you'll excuse me, I have other places to go, better things to do." Not waiting for a response, Logan turned and left.

"Right, of course… Only a few hours left 'til your date after all. High time for you to get ready. You're probably already late," Colin called after him.

Shaking his head, Logan headed towards his room. Really, why did he even bother with those two idiots?

Truth though was that he was indeed – feeling strange about his meeting with Rory. A big part of him was excited – he had wanted to meet her more privately and exclusively for a while now after all. Especially now that he had decided that dating her was definitely something he wanted to do. But as she had been so busy the past few weeks and hardly had time to chat, and not giving him any opportunity to ask her out, he had been forced to postpone his plans.

There was a part of him though that was weary about this evening. It was the same part that had made him hesitate to ask her out in the first place. And it really made him jittery that he had no idea why he had those feelings of uncertainty… of dread.

The part that was most troubling him though was this uncertainty. He had no idea what to expect tonight. With his Ace, anything was possible. Perhaps she'd show up, drop her notes and then would vanish once again, going home or meeting someone like last night. Or perhaps they'd meet and spend an amiable evening, chatting as friends would do until they'd part again, each of them heading their own way. Or…

Or it could turn out to be a real date.

Frustrated, Logan ran a hand through his hair. What the hell happened to nice and easy? Colin was right: complicated girls like his Ace just weren't worth the trouble – or were they? There was something else Colin had said: that the pre-fun phase on a date could be, well, boring. Logan could only agree with that. In fact, since his mind had started to get so busy with thinking about a certain blue-eyed girl he found himself getting bored more and more. And not just in the pre-fun time. Colin wasn't the only one who wondered if there couldn't be more than just – sex. But could one have more than sex without being in a relationship? Because Logan may have conceded to his attraction to Rory and decided to finally go out with her – but that didn't mean by a long shot that he was anywhere near a commitment.

He didn't do relationships.

Once school was over he'd have more than enough time to do the commitment things. Be it with a girl, with work, with family… hell, if everything went according to his mother's plans then he'd be 'happily' married and having fathered one, two kids within five years. Not that he planned to follow that plan. No way. If he was forced into the business he wanted to have at least some last free time at home. And as interesting and funny and beautiful Rory seemed to be and as promising as dating her seemed to be – he wasn't ready to go exclusive with her. With anyone.

Sure, lately he hadn't gone on as many dates as he used to. And he had actually slept with even less girls. Nor had he much fun while going out with random girls. But that was only because there was this damn sexual tension between him and his Ace – once that was gone, and which was hopefully soon, he was pretty sure that that would change again and he'd be back to his old ways.

Perhaps… No. Finn could say what he wanted: Rory wasn't the type that would invite him in to stay for a bit longer – at least not so soon. If they got as far as that, that was that. Which he honestly doubted. Sure, Finn was right, Rory could have approached him differently about this whole article thing. And yeah, she had sent off vibes he was used to get from girls that wanted to date him. But this was his Ace. No matter how tonight's date would progress, she would never let it go that far. He could be happy if this night ended with a kiss. No… he could actually be happy if Rory didn't bolt right after she handed him her notes.

Right.

And that reminded him that it perhaps would be wise to look into that article he was supposed to write. So he'd have a solid base should she really only want to work with him on it. Okay, now was as good a time to start outlining it. Most of all he'd need interviews with both, Professor Warrick and the student leading the protest. Then a few voices out of the faculty and the student body would give a nice touch to it. And he'd need to get a more thorough background on Warrick and about what exactly happened that led to the escalation of events that ended with Warrick resigning. The only thing he had were rumors and though he knew that mostly, rumors for sure held more truth than official statements, he also knew that they were only clouding the truth as well. In this case it seemed that Warrick being an openly admitted homosexual probably was the most solid one he could dig into. He doubted that his having a relationship with a student was really news with legs to stand on – not to mention that in that case two thirds of the faculty staff would have to resign. And though the rumor that Warrick was in reality a transsexual was undoubtedly amusing, he doubted this one as well. Logan actually already had a few chats here and there and they had confirmed that Warrick was a regular in the gay-scene, but nothing more. Just your everyday gay man. Not to mention that many of the students who were furious about Warrick resigning were nothing else but straight. Warrick was one of the most liked and promising teachers at Yale – but it would seem likely that the dusty administration would frown upon such a frivolity as letting a self-proclaimed homosexual teach among the holy reigns of Yale professors.

'Hmm… this really could become one hell of a story', Logan thought and felt excitement rising in him.

Damn.

He didn't want to get excited. He didn't want to feel this thrill when you just knew you were on to a killer story. He didn't want to loose himself in the investigations. And he sure as hell didn't want to feel the satisfaction, the knowledge of having written a good article gave.

Frustrated, Logan went over to his closet to choose his outfit.

Damn, damn, damn… why had the only thing he really loved to do be the one thing his father and his family expected him to do – pressure him to do? Ordered him to do. Why had he inherited that talent to write? That instinct without any reporter could be any good? That deep wish inside to do what he was born to do – be a reporter, lead some of the best papers this country had to offer? It was this knowledge that forced him to stay, to bend to his family's wishes. It was the reason why he couldn't just turn his back, take his money and leave, breaking from the family to live how he wanted to live.

The truth was that Logan didn't write articles occasionally because he got bored every now and then or sick – no, he wrote them because he simply _needed _to write. Sure, it helped that it would also always make his father lay off his back a little. But as his writing was what his family wanted him to do, it was exactly the only thing that he didn't want to do. Too bad that it sadly was also the only thing he was powerless to stop altogether. Without his family constantly on his back, without having heard nothing else in his entire life than that he'd _have_ to become a newsman, that he'd _have_ to take over the business, he probably would be like Rory: wishing to be nothing else than a good reporter and working hard to become just that. He'd be in the school newspaper on his own free will, thriving for good articles and giving his Ace a run for being the best reporter on the staff. He'd dream to become the editor at least in his last year while still writing an occasional article. He'd fight to get a good internship at a paper, preferably at one that had a good name in the business. And he'd hope and dream of getting a job at _The_ _New York Times_.

But he couldn't do that. None of it. He would have good internships because, hey, his family owned more than enough newspapers. He couldn't dream of becoming the editor because he would never know if he had gotten it because he was that good or because his father had made a few calls. He could write and publish as many articles as he wanted and never be sure if his editor found the article really good or if he was too afraid of his father to dare to say that it sucked like Doyle would be. Same with the compliments he received for the few articles he did write in the end. Did they just compliment him because they felt obliged to or was it their honest opinion? Was a good topic assigned to him because he deserved it or because his father expected the editor to hand his son and heir the good stuff? And Logan would never have the chance to work for the _Times_. It was one of the few national leading papers his family didn't own. After a few years in the business and learning the ropes Logan would be able to write for the paper he wished for – as long as it was one the family owned. And even if he decided to try it on his own, as soon as management at the _Times_ would see his name and realize who his family is, they'd have a good laugh and send him home. Because no matter how good he was they'd think he'd only be there to spy for the family's papers – or try to entice their good people away.

It was hopeless. And why the hell did he think about that at all. He had a date to look forward to – and prepare for. Right.

Angrily, Logan pushed several hangers away. They wouldn't do, way too fancy. As well as those, Logan thought, pushing some more clothes away. Actually, most of his clothes were way too fancy for a casual meeting with Rory – and casual it would be, at least for the beginning. And he could tell that his Ace wasn't impressed by tailor-made, expensive clothes. Problem was just that most of his things were exactly that: tailor-made and way expensive.

Wait… there should still be a sweater around somewhere that he bought on a trip to Vermont with Finn and Colin in his first year here. Colin had fallen in love with a girl working in a sports shop and so had dragged them there countless times, forcing them to buy out half of the shop. Resulting in the three boys having a ton of clothes at hand they'd never wear. Well, at least Colin got the girl. Now where was that sweater? Logan had given away most of the clothes but had missed a sweater as he later found out. Ah, there it was! He pulled it out from the bottom of his closet and shook it out, looking critically at the burgundy-colored piece of clothing.

Hmm… It certainly wasn't his style. But he guessed it would do. Actually, combined with some dark pants and his leather jacket it could look pretty good. And Rory would definitely not feel uncomfortable with him at her side in this outfit. Nodding, Logan turned back to his closet, pulled out two pair of pants and turned to the mirror, trying out to see with which of them the sweater would go better.

Suddenly though, staring at himself holding clothes to his body, he grew aware of just what he was doing here. What was he? Some girl who needed an hour to pick out her outfit? He never thought about what to wear unless he needed to find a costume for himself. He knew that everything on his rack looked good on him – he knew that he looked good. He didn't need to stand here in the front of the mirror and worry – or at least ponder how to dress for an eternity! Disgusted, Logan quickly turned away, throwing one of the pair (the less fitting) back into the closet and kicked the door shut with his foot.

He swore to God, that girl would be his downfall!

His eyes fell onto the clock on his nightstand and he cursed. And if he didn't hurry she'd start personally right this evening. How the hell had it gotten so late?

Grabbing his clothes, he rushed off to the shower.

* * *

He was late. But only for a few minutes so he was pretty sure that Rory would let him live. Perhaps. Scanning the room, Logan looked for his – date. Where was she? Surely she wasn't late? Or perhaps she had forgotten about it? Nope, wasn't like Rory. Besides, the room was crowded. It could very well be that she was just hidden from his sight at the moment. Slowly, he began to push his way through the crowd, greeting some people he knew absentmindedly until his eyes fell onto the back of a head with tousled, brown, soft curls and he smiled. There she was. Taking a deep breath, he approached her.

She looked nervous. Why did she look nervous? Well, no better time than the present to find out. "Hey, Ace," he greeted her with a smile, causing her to choke on the coffee she was drinking. His smile grew. Of course she was drinking coffee.

"Hi, Logan, I didn't see you there," Rory greeted him once the choking was over, laughing, somewhat embarrassed. "Hey… Um, how are you?"

Not able to look away from her, Logan answered. "I'm good."

"Oh good, good…" Rory answered, her eyes lingering on him for a moment before she suddenly looked down at the table in front of her. "Okay, so good… Um, here they are," she hurried to say and pointed to the piles of folders in front of her.

Oh, yeah, she definitely was nervous and damn if that didn't make Logan feel very satisfied. Smiling, he finally was able to tear his eyes away from her to look at what she was pointing. He took in the three _high_ piles of folders and felt his eyebrows shoot heavenwards. She had to be kidding, right? "These are the notes for one story?" he asked unbelievingly.

Now definitely embarrassed, Rory nodded. "Yeah, I'm kind of a note freak."

Still incredulous, Logan sat down on one of the bar stools next to her. "Man, Ace, I'm impressed and partially terrified," he commented dryly and picked up a blue folder from the top of the nearest pile to open it and leaf a bit through it. He had never seen so many notes collected for one tiny article. What the hell could be in all those folders?

Rory ignored his comment. "Okay, well, I've divided them up into sections," she said and pointed to a pile with a red folder on top. "Interviews," she pointed to the pile with a yellow folder on it, "research," and then to the pile from where he had taken the folder in his hands, "statistics. I wasn't sure what you already had, but I figured there's something here that can help you with your story."

Logan had continued to leaf through the folder he had picked up and sure enough, sheets filled with numbers and diagrams were arranged and classified for him. "I hope you're getting extra credits for this," he murmured, thinking of all the work she must have put into collecting all those notes. No wonder she never had time to go out.

"Oh, it's nothing," Rory denied.

Finally, Logan looked up to meet her eyes again. "Seems like a lot of work from your part, going through this stuff, organizing it for me," he pointed out in a questioning tone and looked down into the folder again. He suspected that she actually had put in some extra work because statistics on homosexual professors at the universities statewide and Yale in particular surely had nothing to do with the faculty's opinion on the tenure system. Boy, she sure wasn't kidding when she had offered him her help. If there were more notes and information in these folders that so conveniently were exactly what he'd need – and he'd bet there were – then there wouldn't be much left for him to do than to simply write the article.

But Rory waved it away. "Well, I'm kind of an organization freak too."

Clearly, she was avoiding to provide him with any clue how she saw this meeting of theirs continuing and that was frustrating. Or more specifically: her constant mixed signals were frustrating. And Logan was never one to be very patient. He closed the file and put it down, meeting Rory's eyes. "Plus, I'm sure it wasn't your idea to give up your evening like this, to come here and meet me. Was it?" he tried to challenge her to make her tell just what exactly their meeting was. If it was a date.

Of course, Rory avoided him once again though. "Um, I'm just doing a little public service. That's all."

Well, she wouldn't get off that easily. Keeping his eyes locked with hers, he raised an eyebrow. "Public service?"

Rory nodded, smiling slightly. "Yes. Doyle looked like he was about to liquefy after your dad talked to him, so I chose to stop that from happening, for the sake of the janitorial staff."

Right, of course… she was just meeting him here because of Doyle. Problem was that though he didn't quite buy it – he wasn't able to completely exclude the possibility that that was the truth. It was probably for the best that he just played along for the time being. "Yeah," he acknowledged. "He has a thing for by-lines, my father."

"Apparently he has plans for you," Rory stated.

But then this was so not going in any direction he liked. Uncomfortably, he broke the eye contact and picked up the blue folder again, blindly leafing through it some more. "Yes, isn't that thrilling," he though answered with a sarcastic nod, if perhaps a bit evadingly. "Sorry Doyle took the hit. My dad can be a real bully when he wants to be."

Her next words though made him look back at her sharply. "He's a very interesting man."

"You met him?" he asked alarmed and put down the folder again. Just how many people had his father cornered yesterday?

To his relief, Rory shook her head. "No, I've just… read about him. I mean, he's a big guy," she was quick to reassure him.

She sounded as if she wanted to meet his father. Something Logan probably would never understand, but then he grew up under his father's tight control. Hmm… perhaps, if… "Maybe you'll get to meet him someday," he said softly, staring deeply into her eyes for a second before Rory, blushing, lowered her eyelids and nodded.

"Oh, did I show you how I divided these up? Interviews, research, um…" her voice trailed off.

Casting his eyes downwards, Logan desperately tried to get a picture of what exactly was going on here. If she didn't feel this strange, strong attraction that was going on between them, then why was she so flustered right now? Okay – if Logan forgot that she was his Ace and if she were just one of his normal girls then he knew exactly what was going on here: Rory _was_ nervous – because she was as uncertain about all of this as he was – because she _liked_ him. She really liked him. At that thought he had to smile. Taking a deep breath, Logan nodded and looked up, his eyes going straight to meet hers. It was time to put an end to this awkwardness – to this confusion. But this was his Ace. Every instinct he had told him to not be too forward. But then, he also sensed that at least a bit of directness was called for at this moment. "So how come I never see you around?" he asked bluntly, making sure to imply that he didn't mean their occasional meetings at coffee stands.

"I'm around," Rory protested.

"Yeah? Where?" Logan challenged her sarcastically.

"Class, coffee cart, the student's store when I run out of thumbtacks…" Rory listed, her voice though growing weaker with every word.

Logan nodded amused. "Wow, thrilling life," he commented dryly.

Discomfited, Rory bowed her head. "I'm really not that boring," she said and looked up at him again, timidly.

No… no, _that_ she definitely was not. "Oh, I know you're not boring," Logan with a smile assured her.

Brightening up, Rory's eyes began to shine in their blue, blue clearness. "Oh! Doyle told me that your dad is throwing a party for Seymour Hersh?" she mentioned, her voice full of excitement.

"Ah, you want to talk about boring?" Logan immediately avoided her again. Why couldn't she stop speaking about his father? He didn't want to talk about his father. Hell, he'd rather talk about Paris and Doyle and letting her tell him visuals than to talk about his father.

"How can meeting Seymour Hersh be boring?" Rory asked incredulously and Logan could tell that her excitement was growing. "I love him! I read _My Lai 4_ when I was twelve and I've been obsessed with him ever since," she told him, emphasizing her words with gestures with her arm.

"You read a book about the My Lai massacre when you were twelve?" Logan repeated, unbelieving. When he was twelve he had been interested in quite another set of books. He had struggled with that book when he was sixteen.

"Well, I polished off _Nancy Drew_ that year too," Rory answered him, smiling.

It looked as if she was relaxing here a bit. Who would have figured that it was talk about Seymour Hersh and a gruesome massacre out of all that would do the trick? Hmm, actually, he should probably have known it. But now that he knew what would make her feel more comfortable he could as well go with that direction – even if it sure wasn't doing much for his peace. "Well, I guarantee, these parties always turn into a bunch of discussing stocks, cars and latest friends to be indicted. It's boring. I just go, take a date so I have somebody to talk to and bail as soon as my dad's back is turned," he told her straight.

"Oh, so you're going?" Rory asked surprised.

"Daddy says," Logan confirmed and hoped that he hadn't sounded too bitter right there.

But Rory didn't seem to have noticed. "Wow, lucky," she commented and Logan was almost sure he had heard envy there in her voice. Hadn't she just listened? "No," he insisted, shaking his head.

"To spend the evening with a great writer, and to get to meet him, hear him talk?" Rory tried to reason with him and in her eagerness leaned a bit forward. "Very, very lucky!"

An idea forming in his head, he stared at her. "You think so?" he asked, truly having trouble believing that anyone would actually want to go to such a thing.

"Definitely," Rory confirmed, nodding.

"Well, maybe this time it won't be so bad after all," Logan softly said, truthfully. With her at his side it just couldn't be bad.

For more than just a few heartbeats they held their eyes as the unsaid promise settled into both of their consciousness. Wow… he was pretty sure that he had just asked her out to another date – to a party of his father. Who'd have ever thought? But that was meaningless. All that counted was that she actually seemed to have agreed. And judging from the blush that crept up her cheeks he was confident that that wasn't just because he was taking her along to go meet an author she fancied. A knowledge that thrilled and affected him in a very good way like he very seldom was affected. If ever.

Breaking their eye contact by looking down, Logan took a deep breath to calm himself down. "So, do you want something to drink?" he asked and looked hopefully back at her. "Or do you have to go?"

To his immense relief and pleasure, she shook her head. "No, I don't have to go. I don't have anywhere to go," she made pretty clear.

"Okay," Logan nods, smiling. He liked how clear she had just been there. "Be right back," he promised and got up. Pushing his hands into his pockets, he left for the bar, not able to stop his smile. This night started to look better and better.

"Two Sheridans please," Logan ordered. He wanted Rory to drink something more date-like than an everyday coffee – though Sheridan was technically a sort of coffee as well. And he didn't want to have something stronger, at least not for now. He wanted to have all his wits together tonight. Not that a few drinks would affect him much. But tonight, he wanted to bond with his Ace and he doubted that they could do that with whiskey or scotch. Besides, he truly liked Sheridan as well.

"Sure, Huntz, just a moment," Rick nodded and went to get the drinks.

Leaning against the bar, he looked back to Rory who had grabbed one of the folders and was leafing through it in a similar manner as he had done before. He was pretty sure that she knew the contents of each folder by heart so it was only natural that he wondered just what she was thinking right now – or feeling. Well, if it was a mixture of confusion, nervousness, warmth and anticipation then they'd be right on the same page here. Strange, he wondered what they were going to talk about once he was back. About his article? About the school? Movies? Books? Life? Would they exchange stories of their first time? Or would he finally be able to coerce out of her just what had happened at that damn funeral that had upset her so much? He had no idea. And why was he worrying about this so much? They sure never had a problem talking with each other. But then, though there had been an undeniable attraction between them, at least on his part, it never had been so strong and overwhelming like right now.

"So you and that reporter girl, huh?"

At the deriding comment, Logan broke off his thoughtful gaze on Rory and looked up. "Robert," he greeted coldly.

Smirking, Robert leaned against the bar beside him. "And here I already thought that you weren't interested in her anymore."

Grinding his teeth, Logan turned to face the counter again. "Is there something you want?"

Robert shrugged. "Just saying hello. And hey, you still owe me the money from the last poker game."

Ah, now they were getting to the bottom of this. Robert probably was already broke again. That was usually the time when he would go around collecting debts. "Jeez, Robert, give the man a chance to win it back first."

Robert snorted. "We're talking nine grand here, Huntz. No chance you're winning that much money back. Or do I have to remind you that you suck at poker."

Logan glanced at him with raised eyebrows. "Careful, Robert. You almost sounded as if you're in desperate need. What happened? Daddy cut you off again?" he mocked.

"You know, that was a pretty lame affront there compared to your usual standard. What happened?" Robert repeated his words. "Daddy's visit threw you off?"

"Whatever you want to believe," Logan told him curtly and, seeing Rick coming back with his drinks, pulled out his wallet to pay. "And relax. We're having the next poker game next week, Sunday. You'll get your money then – if I still owe you some at the end of that evening."

"It's your money. Just make sure you don't forget to pay," Robert told him haughtily. "And pay you will. Poker's just not your game, Huntzberger."

Logan took his drinks and turned, his eyes falling onto Rory, and he smiled. "You know what they say Robert: misfortune in the games, lucky in love. So I think in the end I'll always be the winner whereas you…" he let his voice trail off and threw a last glance at Robert, who didn't look very happy at all at his implication. Good. "Well, as you can see, more fascinating and pleasurable company awaits me." He started back for their table.

"Make sure to give me a call once you're through with her," Robert called after him. "It would be a pity if she never had the pleasure to be with a real man after all."

Logan pretended to not have heard that last comment, not that it was easy. He longed to take a good swing at Robert. Too bad that he very much doubted that that would agree well with Rory. And he was here to see Rory, not pick a fight with Robert. God, he hated that jerk. Always had hated him and pretty surely would hate him for the rest of his life.

"Sorry it took so long," Logan apologized when he arrived back at their table.

Rory looked up and put down the folder. "No problem. The place is quite crowded." She shook her head. "One could think there are no classes at all tomorrow."

Smiling, Logan put one of the glasses in front of her. "Not everyone is as serious with his studies as you, Ace. Actually, I'm pretty sure no one is as determined."

"No, I think there are worse people than me," Rory denied.

"Yeah? Who?" Logan challenged her with a grin.

Ace rolled her eyes. "Now how should I know them? The whole point here is that they're only seen in classes and perhaps in the cafeteria if you're very lucky. The rest of the time though they barricade themselves in their rooms or the library." She tilted her head. "Now, if we didn't magically land in the 'Twilight Zone', didn't develop clones or droids so far, aren't invaded by aliens or mastered astral protection then I think it's pretty obvious that I am indeed here and that you and Finn and Colin know me good enough to give me nicknames, you, the three kings at the center of the party scene here at Yale. I can hardly be so studious then."

Logan laughed. She was good. Didn't mean though that he wasn't still better. "Yeah, but fact remains that we only got to know you better because you were working. Nor does this change the fact that usually when we meet, you either are coming from class or are on the way to class. And if it's not class it's always, 'sorry guys, can't, need to study'. Not to mention that here you are, amazed that so many people actually do something else on a normal weekday's evening than - gasp - what? Right, studying."

He expected her to get annoyed. She usually got annoyed when she just got outmaneuvered. But she surprised him by laughing as well. "Okay, okay, I do like to study. Won't deny that. And yeah, I put my studies first, before anything else."

Like he hadn't already guessed _that_. "Mommy never had to remind you to do your homework, right?" he joked.

With a grin, she shook her head. "Nope, not once," she answered proudly. "In fact, when she came nagging then it was for me to stop studying and start playing with her."

"Weird," Logan commented, shaking his head as he tried to grasp that concept. Oh, he believed Rory on the spot – but remembering his childhood, it was still hard to believe. Not that his mother ever bothered to remind him personally – that was the nanny's job.

"That's us," Rory nodded with a shrug and then met his eyes, her grin fading to a soft smile. "But you know, just because I like to study and I'm not a regular here, doesn't mean I don't kick back either. Ever thought that perhaps different people also like other things for relaxing than partying and drinking?"

"No, really?" he mockingly gasped.

She nodded.

"And what would that be Ace?" he asked her, raising his eyebrows.

Her smile intensified. "Well, there's reading for one – and don't even start to make a grimace, Huntzberger. We spent several times talking books and you can't hide it from me anymore: you're a bookworm in the closet." When Logan once again tried to protest, she held up her hand. "Uh, uh, uh, spare your breath. No one who buys ten non-school related books and can recite Tolstoy by heart can _not _be a bookworm."

Logan shushed her and cast a nervous glance around playfully. "Will you keep it down? You'll ruin my reputation here!"

"So you admit it?" she insisted, her eyes laughing at him.

Sighing, Logan nodded defeated, couldn't help the smile though. "Yeah, yeah. I like to read. Just keep it to yourself. Finn's world would topple if he'll ever find out."

"Your secret's safe with me," Rory assured him with a laugh. "Then there are movies and shows. It's a religion, you know. Teaches you all you'll ever need in life and that you can't learn in books and school."

"I'm shocked, Ace," Logan replied. "Haven't you heard that people like you are supposed to hate the television and its degrading influence on our society, our youth in particular?"

"Those are idiots who never learned how to watch," Rory stated firmly and then raised an eyebrow. "Besides, you did hear me with Finn, right?"

"Yeah, unfortunately. I'm still trying to detect which one of you is worse," Logan answered, making a face.

"Oh, me, definitely me," Rory immediately assured him.

"Okay. But I think I'll better keep that to myself as well. Don't think Finn would survive that shock either," Logan promised. "So we have books and television. Sorry Ace, can't say I'm impressed so far. I'll admit that it can be fun – but it's surely not the salt of life."

"I beg to differ – but then, I'm not finished yet," Rory contradicted.

"Oh, sorry then," Logan apologized and waved at her. "Please continue."

But Rory was silent, looking at him for a long moment. Just when he was about to ask her if something was wrong, she shook her head though. "Sorry. Censored."

Censored? His eyebrows shot to heaven as Logan stared incredulously at her. _Censored?_ "What?"

"No Logan. I don't think you're ready to hear it all yet," Rory said, shaking her head again.

"Excuse me? Ace, come on! This is me! I'm sure there's nothing that can shock _me_!" Logan protested.

"No."

"Ace!"

"Just doing what's best for you," Rory pointed out, staying firm.

"I'm older than you," Logan argued. "I've been to every continent and have done at least one illegal thing on each. I've seen a jail from behind bars, several times. I've pulled things you wouldn't believe. I'm proud to say that Colin, Finn and I tried to do as much foolishness as we could do. There's nothing that needs to be censored for me."

"No, you're not ready to take it all. Just give it up, Huntzberger," Rory though insisted, unimpressed.

The hell he would. She couldn't come teasing him like that and then simply stop! "Okay, what does it take, Gilmore?" he asked, narrowing his eyes.

But she just laughed. "Sorry, Logan. That's nothing you can buy. I'll eventually tell you if I think you're ready. So… where are Colin and Finn tonight? Don't you have plans with them?"

Grumpy, Logan threw her a look. "Want to get rid of me?" he asked sarcastically, still busy trying to figure out what exactly she wouldn't tell him.

"No, not at all," Rory said quickly, as Logan noticed with pleasure. "It's just unusual to see you without the company of your two sidekicks."

"We've met several times when Finn and Colin weren't there," Logan pointed out.

"Yeah, well…" Rory admitted.

"In fact, we already went out together to town and none of them were anywhere in sight if I remember correctly," Logan simply continued to make his point.

"Okay, okay, so you're not physically attached," Rory accepted defeat. "But then, as all those times were daytime and as I know for a fact that you're all in your third year, I assume that you actually do, contrary to common belief, attend classes here and there. Now is nighttime, though, party time and I've never seen you alone at this time of day. Is it any wonder if I'm a bit surprised by that? Or that you don't seem to even have plans for afterwards?"

Hmm… could he be wrong or was Rory aiming for something here? Like a confirmation that this was a 'date'? Damn… who'd have thought that dating could get so complicated? It never had been complicated before. He'd ask the girl, she'd say yes and everything was clear. Or sometimes the girl came and would ask him, he'd say yes or would reschedule otherwise and everything was clear as well. But this here… it was just frustrating.

"Contrary to common belief, as well, my sidekicks and I, as you called them, not a reference they'd appreciate by the way, don't spend all our time together," Logan carefully answered, meeting her eyes. "I was meeting you tonight and I actually have no idea what they are doing tonight."

Rory was quiet for a beat of a second. "We just met so I could give you my notes," she said hesitantly. "Plenty of time unanswered for."

Very, very frustrating.

"We didn't define a time span though," Logan pointed out and hesitated. Oh, what the hell. He had enough of that game. "And you know, one thing we definitely don't do together is dating. That's one thing each of us does on his own."

Okay, okay, so he didn't get direct all the hundred percent. But he wasn't keen on sitting there like an idiot, and that he would if he'd interpreted this evening wrong so far. It was still direct enough, wasn't it?

"Oh," Rory said softly and after another long moment of staring at him looked down, blushing. She even took a long swallow from her drink. Interesting. But not helping his nervousness.

"So… not very satisfying to hold hands with Finn or Colin?" Rory eventually commented, looking up again.

Ugh… frustrating, frustrating, frustrating!!!!

"No, not very," Logan answered, sighing inwardly. "Though Finn's preferable to Colin." When her eyes widened, he smirked. "Sweaty hands, you know. You better pray to never have to depend on Colin to keep you from falling to your death."

She burst out laughing. "Thanks, Logan. Way too much information."

He shrugged grinning. "Hey, you asked!"

Nodding, she still chuckled. "And I think I got my lesson. But you know, that wasn't very nice. He's your best friend. Lane would kill me for a comment like that."

"Just being realistic here, Ace," Logan shrugged her comment off. "But he has other qualities none of which I'll go into detail though."

"Thanks," Rory sarcastically answered.

"And I trust you to not say a word about this to him, of course," Logan continued.

There was suddenly a twinkle in her eyes. "I dunno… totally depends on you. Be a nice boy and I'll see what I can do about keeping my mouth shut."

Logan raised an eyebrow. "Careful, Ace. Trying to blackmail me? I thought you've learned your lesson the last time."

She shrugged. "I've learned in the meantime. And I collected information so I won't make the same mistake twice."

"Did you?" Logan asked amused.

Ace nodded.

"Do I want to hear details?" he inquired further.

She shook her head, smiling.

"Okay… then let's change topic," Logan suggested.

"Suggestions?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Logan nodded. "Tell me about your sidekicks."

"My sidekicks?" Rory asked, surprised. "I don't have any sidekicks."

"Come on, Ace, I don't believe that. Tell me about your Finn and Colin," he pleaded, truly wanting to know it. She always seemed to be so alone when he meet her. Sure, she mentioned that Lane girl. And there was Geller. But that couldn't be all, couldn't it?

Her eyes wandered off. "Well, there's Lane. She's my oldest friend and definitely needs to be put into the best friend category. We grew up together and it was just fate that we met I think. She's just the right kind of crazy to get along with me and Mom. Which is truly amazing if you know her background?"

"And that would be?" Logan asked.

"She's Korean. And her parents are truly religious and their deepest wish was for Lane to either marry a doctor, of course Korean and regular church-going Christian, or then to become a bride Christies. They sent her to one of those religious colleges as well," Rory told.

"Something tells me that wasn't quite what she had in mind," Logan remarked.

Rory shook her head, laughing quietly. "Not at all. She fell in love with Rock'n Roll when she was six and from then on started collecting every snippet of Rock'n Roll she could – to then hide them in her room. You should have seen how and where she hides them. Practically under every floorboard there was a secret stash of discs. Her closets had secret boxes." She grinned. "The secret operations I had to perform in order to provide her with the most essentials she needed to live whenever she was grounded, and believe me, that happened quite a few times, had me prepared for a career either as a very successful criminal or as a secret agent."

"You?" Logan remarked skeptically.

"Me," Rory nodded.

Logan raised an eyebrow. "Hmm. Hard to believe. Or does this have to do with those censored stuff you refuse to tell me?"

"Nice try," Rory told him with a grin.

"A man does what he can," Logan answered with a shrug. "So back to Lane."

"There's not much more to tell. In our second year in high school she fell in love with a drum and hence learned how to play the drum. Not soon after she started a band. She's adamant now to become the world's best female drummer," Rory continued her story.

Logan snickered. "I bet her parents were thrilled."

Rory nodded. "Don't underestimate her. She managed to keep it secret until a year ago when they had a gig that only started at two in the morning. It was the first time she couldn't find some weird explanation for her absence and in the end, she just went, without any note. Once she was brave enough to go back home and face the music she admitted everything and told her mom everything she has hidden since her early childhood and what she really wanted to do with her life."

Intrigued and captured, Logan leaned forward. "And?"

"She showed up at my dorm with her suitcase and asked if she could stay with me for a while," Rory sighed.

"They threw her out?" Logan asked incredulously, despite halfway expecting that.

"Yeah. After a while, she went back to Stars Hollow and moved into a shabby apartment together with two of her band mates. Male I might add," Rory told him. "Now she's working at Luke's diner to support herself and the rest of the time they practice and have gigs." She smiled. "Actually, they're pretty good. I'm sure she'll make it."

"And her parents?" Logan wanted to know.

Rory shrugged. "For a while there was coldness, no contact. After a while, they started talking again. Right now it's still tense but I think once her mother understands that just because Lane went her own way and wants to become a drummer doesn't mean that she forgotten her education and the values her parents taught her and won't become a whore deep in alcohol and drugs, it will get okay. Bottom line, they love one another."

Logan was silent, looking down into his glass. He couldn't deny that he was impressed by what Rory had told him about her friend. She seemed quite a character. And what a courage that girl had. She had just stood up against her parents for her dreams, had risked everything. And it seemed as if it had worked. He wished he could do that. But he couldn't. He just couldn't.

And this definitely wasn't the time and place to dwell over that. "So… is Lane your Finn or Colin?" he asked lightly.

"Hmm, Finn I think, though she's not as crazy as that friend of yours by a long haul," Rory answered laughing.

"No one is as crazy, Ace," Logan told her.

"Yeah, there is: Kirk," she immediately contradicted, like she always did when he or Colin or even Finn told her the exact same thing.

"So you keep saying. I've yet to see proof of that," Logan pointed out.

"Well, for starters you can try to search entries in the internet about Star Hollow's Revolutionary Re-enactment staged three weeks ago," Rory said, leaning back. "The person in the red dress is Kirk. But basically it's like with Finn. You've got to experience Kirk in person in order to do a fair judgment. As I have seen, experienced and lived Finn _and_ Kirk in person, unlike you, I can say accurately who is worse. And that's definitely Kirk."

Logan smirked. "You think you've seen all of Finn? Ace, Ace, Ace, you have seen nothing so far."

"Which I think I'm extremely grateful for. But my choice still stands: it's Kirk. Believe me, no one can beat Kirk," Rory insisted.

"And I don't think we'll come to an agreement here, Ace," Logan said, shaking his head. "So tell me now about your Colin."

She frowned. "I don't have a Colin. But there's Paris."

"Geller?" Logan asked incredulously. Okay, they were roommates. But friends?

Rory though nodded, smiling. "I know, I know. Hard to imagine and even harder to understand. Don't ask me how it happened. I truly have no idea. And there are a lot of times when I ask myself just how hard fate's laughing about that special twist it played me. But it doesn't change the fact that Paris is my friend. And a surprisingly good one at that."

"Sorry, Ace." Logan shook his head. "Still can't see it."

"Hey, I said don't ask me!" Rory told him, but shrugged. "I've met Paris when I started at Chilton. It was hate on first sight, though definitely more on her side. And you've got to ask her why, not me. We co-existed while the teachers kept pairing us up for team-assignments. Somewhere along the way we stopped barking at each other and became somewhat friends. Things though were complicated because the guy she had a crush on since first grade or something found it funny to chase me all over Chilton and insisted on calling me Mary."

Logan sneered. "Mary, huh? Now I think _that_ I can see very well."

Rory turned annoyed eyes on him. "You better be careful, Huntzberger. I didn't appreciate it then and I sure won't appreciate it now. And it was pretty much the biggest mistake Tristan could have made in order to win my attention, even if I hadn't been together with Dean anymore."

Logan held up his hands. "Come on, Ace, be realistic. You _are_ a Mary. Back in high school you must have just been predestined to become the Mary," he remarked and then shook his head. "But please, give me more credit here. Believe me that I wouldn't have been so stupid to go around and call you that. That really had been stupid for that guy."

Flabbergasted, she stared at him. "What is this? Do you guys take an annual secret vote to label the girls? Is there a running contest also?"

Laughing, Logan shook his head. "Sorry, Ace, I'm not in any position to tell you that. Censored."

"Figures…" she murmured.

"Okay, so back to Paris and that guy. Tristan you said?" Hmm… he wondered… "What's his last name by the way?"

She narrowed her eyes. "DuGrey, why?" she asked suspiciously and then groaned. "No wait, let me guess: You know him, don't you? I mean, he's Hartford, rich, spoiled and a guy. Of course, you know him."

"Whoa, calm down. And for your information, no, I don't know him," Logan told her, working hard to hold back his grin – and failing. "You know, there are many rich people living in Hartford. We don't know everybody. Not to mention that DuGrey's younger. But I did hear about him," he acknowledged.

"You did?" she asked frowning.

Logan shrugged. "DuGrey was sent to military school, wasn't he?" Rory nodded. "There you have it. Our parents love to threaten us with such a thing and when it finally happened you can be sure that most fathers told their sons at least one time the following months to better behave or be more mature or next thing we know we'd be rooming with that DuGrey boy. I for sure heard it a few times. And I heard Colin's father say that to Colin. And Finn's to Finn."

"Seriously?" Rory asked, apparently astonished by such a thing.

Oh, she had yet a lot to learn about that world. "Seriously. Boarding schools are common. Most of us know that, live with that and not only a few of us were looking forward to get away from home, even if it's for a boarding school. But military school?" He shook his head. "That's pretty much the worst punishment they can inflict on us."

For a moment, she stared at him, then she shook her head. "I don't think I'll ever understand this world."

Logan met her eyes and was silent for a moment. "I hope so," he quietly told her. "So, Paris," he reminded her – and himself after yet another moment.

"Right…" Rory nodded, looking away. "Once Tristan was gone it got… better with her. She first started to tolerate me until she somewhat deemed me as her best competitor, the one that could keep up with her and keep her on her toes. And I guess she was right with that. She sure kept me on my toes. Because there was no way that I would have let Gellar get the better of me. We both wanted Harvard and we both knew that it wasn't easy to get accepted there. And that it needed a lot of work. So of course we found ourselves mostly participating in the same projects. We worked together at the paper. We built a house together. And when she went to run for school president for our fourth year, she talked me into being her running mate for vice-president. Unfortunately we won, forcing us to spend even more time together. I guess somewhere along the way we became friends."

"Strange," Logan commented dryly.

"Tell me about it!" Rory said, rolling her eyes.

"Okay… and how come you both landed here in Yale as roommates?" Logan asked curiously.

Rory shrugged. "I was very surprised to find out on my first day here that Paris was coming to Yale as well – or to find myself sharing the same suite with her. Thanks to her, by the way, her dad made a call on Terrence's suggestion."

"Terrence?" Logan asked with a frown.

"Her life coach," Rory nodded.

"Life coach?" Logan did a double take. "As in Oprah?"

Again, Rory nodded. "Got it in one. And I'm impressed: you watch Oprah?"

Logan threw her a look. Now that was a low blow. "Please. I have a mother and I have a sister. Do I need to say more?"

Laughing, Rory shook her head. "Okay, okay… well, Paris and I agreed at the end of last year that we definitely didn't want to share our suite with other girls again. We know and trust each other and so Paris let her parents pull a few strings again so we could move in together. It's really not that bad. You just need time to let her grow on you." She sighed. "A loooooooooooong time."

"If you say so…" Logan said doubtfully.

She nodded. "Hey, what I wanted to ask you: how come you're not rooming with Colin and Finn? Surely with all that power and money of your parents it would have been a piece of cake to get a suite for the three of you."

Logan made a face. "Somehow, my father thought it would be counterproductive for me to ever get my diploma while rooming with Colin and Finn. In fact, he was very displeased when he learned that both of them had decided to come to Yale as well. Basically, he will only pay my school fees and his usual alumni contributions as long as I'm not rooming with them." He would have had enough money of his own to afford the fee, barely – but with his father also threatening the board with the loss of his donations he'd never have gotten permission to get housing together with Colin and Finn. When Rory said nothing, he glanced at her. She looked sympathetic. Good. He would have hated to see her pitiful. He hated pity. With sympathy he could live. He smiled. "But then I've got to admit that I rather see Colin rooming with Finn. Sure, he's my best mate, but boy, to have him 24/7 around?" he shook his head.

Rory smiled. "I see. 20/7 are enough, huh?"

"Hmm, I'd say after 15/7 you've reached the limit. Because he and Colin are my best friends I manage eighteen to twenty hours if necessary," Logan specified with a grin.

"Same with Paris," Rory laughed, her eyes twinkling.

"Ah, point taken," Logan nodded, smiling. "So… those are your best friends, huh? Lane since forever and Paris since a few years?"

"Well, yeah," Rory nodded. "Though I've only met Lane on my first day of school."

Surprised, Logan raised an eyebrow. "And no one before? Who were your playmates?"

"We lived out of town, Logan. There weren't any kids around at the Inn, well apart from the children of guests, but they didn't stay long enough for me to make friends with them," she explained.

"At the Inn? What Inn?" Logan asked. This was new for him.

"The Independence Inn, a few miles away from Stars Hollow. Mom started to work there as a maid and in return we could live there for free. It took Mom almost ten years to go to school, be qualified for other positions in the Inn, move up the ladder until she got the top job of inn manager and then save enough money to buy and move into our house in Stars Hollow," Rory clarified.

"You lived in a hotel?" Logan repeated, truly having a hard time to grasp that. "While your mom worked as a maid?"

Rory nodded. "There was not much choice for her when she left Hartford with me. Yeah, she finished high school, despite being pregnant, but she didn't have anything else. And even then it was hard to get a job that would support not only her but also me without anything than a high school diploma to her name. But she begged Mia for so long that she finally gave in and gave her the job and the roof over our heads and she never had a reason to regret it." Her eyes all of a sudden turned cautious. "Why? You've got a problem with that?" she asked in a sharp voice her hands crossing in front of her.

Immediately, Logan shook his head. "No, not at all," he quickly assured her, ignoring the sharp pain her question gave him. After everything, how could she think that he'd have a problem with that? Right, that damn funeral.

Rory's eyes widened and she looked down, taking a deep breath, before she looked back into Logan's eyes. "Logan, sorry… I didn't want to snap at you, really, I just… sorry," she apologized and he could see that she meant every word.

"No offense taken, Ace," Logan said softly, holding her eyes. "Ace," he addressed her after a moment. "What happened at the funeral?" he asked gently.

Immediately, Rory looked away. "What do you mean? It'd been a funeral," she evasively said.

"Ace," Logan sighed. "Please?"

It took a moment, but eventually, she looked back at him. "Why do you want to know anyway?" she asked, frowning.

Logan shrugged. He wasn't sure. He wasn't sure about a lot of things that concerned this girl. He just knew that he wanted to know. But he doubted that that would be reason enough for Rory. "Just curious I guess," he answered. "And I'd like to hear it so I can tell you just where and why they've been wrong."

Slowly, Rory raised her glass and drank the rest of the Sheridan while Logan waited with bated breath how she'd decide. "There's not much to tell Logan," she said finally with a sigh. "I arrived at the church and Francine wasn't very pleased to see me. She took one look at me and she got all pale as if seeing a ghost. When I got close enough to pay her my condolences, she didn't even wait for me to speak but just hissed, asking what I was doing there. I tried to answer, but again she wouldn't let me and just turned away. I was ready to go right then, but at that moment, Dad came and he looked so relieved to see me, I just…" she shook her head. "I stayed. Dad insisted that I went with him to the front row where the family is supposed to sit and when his mother threw me a death glare, he just sent her one right back and pushed me down to then sit beside him. That's how two of the longest hours of my life began. The whole time while the priest and a ton of people talked about how wonderful a person Straub was while I felt the eyes of the entire church on me, wondering who I am and hear those who figured it out whispering that there sits the bastard and how's it possible that she had the nerve to show up here, after everything I destroyed. And then those people up front? I dunno, I've met that man only once and he was such a jerk then and after everything Mom and Dad told me about that guy I just can't believe that he was such a saint according to the eulogies given!"

Her fingers nervously twitched as her gaze was roving around to look at everything and anything - but Logan. "But of course you don't badmouth anyone at their funeral, huh? And I never got to know him. Well, eventually, it was over and the coffin down in the earth and I wanted to finally get away from there – when Dad insisted that I ride with him and Francine in the limo. I don't know why… I think he wanted her to get to know me better and figured that if he was there and no one could flee without risking death she somehow would warm up to me or something."

"I guess that plan failed?" Logan said carefully, not taking his eyes off her.

She snorted. "What do you think? Total failure. As soon as we were inside she started in on Dad – what he was thinking, what he wanted to achieve, if that was his ultimate revenge on his dad and her and that he really could have had more sensibility of her feelings and just how he could have done this to her. She talked as if I wasn't in the limo with them. I didn't exist. She didn't even look at me." She bit her lip and Logan cursed himself for having brought up that topic. It was obvious that it still hurt her and that was no wonder. How dare they?!?!

"I'm sorry, Ace… I shouldn't have asked," he apologized. "You don't have…" his voice trailed off when she looked at him.

"They never gave me a chance, Logan. I'm their granddaughter. Their only one for almost eighteen years. Grandpa and Grandma weren't thrilled either about their sixteen-year-old daughter having a baby, but never, not once, did they blame me or let me feel anything if ever they were disappointed. They just love me, Logan. They're proud of me. I know they'd do anything for me. And the Haydens?" Rory swallowed and looked away again. "Nothing. Not a letter, not one word of kindness, simply nothing. I don't exist for them. Why? They don't even know me."

If he knew that it would serve anything he'd make sure that those bastards got exactly the thing they deserved. He could sic his mother on Francine Hayden. And he could hire some Devil's to drive out to Hartford and make a mess of Straub's resting place. Oh yeah, he longed to do something to them for hurting his Ace so much – but at the same time he instinctively knew that that wasn't at all what Rory needed – or would approve of. Too bad. But, he knew for sure that Francine Hayden should be censured for her bad behavior towards her own granddaughter.

"Ace, look at me," he pleaded her. Hesitantly, she did as she was asked. Once he was sure he had her full attention, he leaned forward and took her hand. "There is no excuse for that. But simply believe me that I have no trouble to admit that this bunch of people are, with few exceptions, big jerks and assholes, married to bitches and wenches. They are definitely not nice and yeah, they can be real cruel simply because you're not quite the same as they are. But you know what? That doesn't mean that they are right. And it doesn't mean that all of us think alike. Believe me, we, the new generation? We're already way better. It's just that time moves very slowly in high society." He sighed. "It's entirely their loss if they're stupid enough to pass on the opportunity to get to know you. I for one, though I admit that we had a rocky beginning, feel honored to have had that privilege. And believe me, Colin wouldn't let himself be made an idiot of just for anyone. And Finn wouldn't start cooking to throw a midnight picnic for just anyone."

Rory stared at him for a very, very long time, in which Logan nervously waited for her reaction. He didn't feel safe on this ground. He wasn't good at comforting a girl. Actually, he never really had to. Not even with Honor. Not that he wouldn't have been there for her, but first, she was older than him, quite a few years actually and that made it pretty much impossible to help her through the usual stuff like first break-up and such things. And second, they seldom were together as they were both at boarding schools – of course not the same ones. Of course they e-mailed and everything, but that wasn't the same. She had her girlfriends to take care of her and he had Colin and Finn. So this was really new for him – and he wasn't sure if he liked this. He sure as hell didn't like to see her so hurt. And it was already the third time he found himself in the situation where he felt the powerful need to comfort her. First when that asshole broke up with her, then when her dad had shown up out of the blue and now this. But he felt that this time it went a lot deeper and was hurting her a lot more. God, he just hoped she wouldn't start crying…

But thankfully, she didn't cry – but gave him a shaky smile. "No? And here I thought I was just one of the many."

Relieved, he smiled right back at her. "No, Ace. Definitely not," he told her, truthfully.

"Well, just for your information, I don't just go off with anyone at midnight either – or pull a Rosy on just everyone," Rory said and Logan was pleased to see light coming back into her eyes.

"Good to know. So… want another drink?" he asked, nodding at her empty glass.

Unfortunately though, she looked onto her watch and Logan was already hearing her answer: 'Sorry no, gotta go.'

"Sure, why not?"

"Come on, Ace, just… what?" he asked perplexed, staring at her with wide eyes.

She raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I'd like to have another drink," she repeated, inclining her head to look curiously at him.

"You do?" he asked incredulously. She did? "You don't need to go back to study or finish an article or paper or something?"

"Nope, all done. Why? That a problem?" she asked, smiling.

"No!" Logan hurried to say. "Not at all. It's great. I uhm... I'll be right back then," he said, cringing at how stupid that had sounded.

"Okay, I'll be here," she nodded, her smile intensifying.

"Uh, yeah…" Logan said and quickly left for the counter before he would make an even bigger idiot out of himself.

* * *

"Okay, favorite eighties show?"

"Okay, but don't laugh: 'Scarecrow and Mrs. King'."

"Really?" Logan shook his head and laughed.

"Hey, I said no laughing!" Rory exclaimed and gave him a light slap on the arm.

"Come on, Ace! 'Scarecrow and Mrs. King'? Why for Heaven's sake?" Logan protested, dancing out of her reach.

"Besides the fact that Lee's just drool worthy?" Rory asked. "It's a cool show. I mean, there's this normal housewife and mother and she kicked ass like a pro and saved the country and world several times."

"Like a pro? Ace, you've really seen the show?" Logan asked grinning.

"Well, I admit she's not kicking ass yet like Jessica Alba in 'Dark Angel' or Garner in 'Alias', but that was the eighties. It's proof of how much society changed in favor of woman power and Kate Jackson was right there from the beginning: first as Sabrina in 'Charlie's Angels' and then later as Mrs. King. She's a pioneer. And one of the few actors at all who managed to not just get one great show hit but two," Rory explained and looked at Logan. "So if you like your life you better don't mock her again, at least not in my presence."

"Okay, okay, I give in," Logan conceded. "But only because it was quite a good show. But there were many better ones."

"Oh yeah, like what? 'TJ Hooker'? 'Miami Vice'?" Rory shook her head. "Come on, let's hear your favorite show of the eighties. But a fair warning: if you say 'Knight Rider' I'll never speak a word with you again."

"Hey! Kitt was cool!" Logan protested.

"David Hasselhoff," Rory just said.

"Kitt!" Logan contradicted.

She sighed sadly. "Well, in that case: nice having known you, Logan." She turned away slightly.

"Wait a minute, Ace! I didn't say it's my favorite. I just pointed out that despite David Hasselhoff, Kitt was cool," Logan quickly threw in.

Rory stopped and turned to face him. "So shoot."

_"In 1972 a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn't commit," _Logan quoted, sure that an obvious TV junkie like his Ace would recognize it immediately.

And sure enough, her eyes shone up. "_If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire the A-Team," _she continued to quote with a grin. "Seriously? 'The A-Team'? I'm impressed, Huntzberger. You just showed your first sign of style."

Logan raised an eyebrow. "Really?" he asked skeptically. After her speech about Kate Jackson he had been almost sure that Rory would frown about his choice. After all, 'The A-Team,' so great, was quite a macho show. And action. He didn't see Ace as the action type.

"Hey, I may admire Kate Jackson, but I'm still a girl and which girl wouldn't love a show about four hot guys with wit, charisma and the air of being the last surviving cowboys?" Rory said and shook her head. "Besides, Mom had a huge crush on Dirk Benedict, first from 'Battlestar Galactica' and then 'The A-Team'. I can assure you that we never miss any of the re-runs and are waiting impatiently on the next season's DVD."

"And you? Which is your favorite?" Logan asked curiously, though he had a hunch who it would be.

"Murdock, of course. No one beats him. Face may have had the better looks, but boy, Murdock beats them all with his genius," Rory indeed answered without hesitation.

"Why am I not surprised?" Logan said with a grin, but then made a face. "Please remind me to never get you and Finn in the same room and talk about 'The A-Team'. Or if you do, make sure I'll be far, far away from there."

Rory laughed. "Yeah, Finn seems the Murdock type."

"He's convinced that he's a re-incarnation of the Fool," Logan nodded, rolling his eyes.

"That would actually explain a lot," Rory commented dryly. "And you? Face or Hannibal?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Why not BA?"

"Please," Rory just said.

"Okay… it's Hannibal," Logan admitted, smiling. But hey, you just gotta love the man with the plan.

"Figures," Rory remarked.

Logan raised an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, nothing at all…" Rory said as they rounded the last corner that led to her dorm. Once in front of her door, she turned to him. "So… thanks for the drinks."

Logan shook his head, "I feel as if I should rather thank you for letting me offer you the drinks. But thanks for the notes," he said and changed the bag with the notes in it from one shoulder to the other. "And thank you already for the back damage carrying those around will give me," he mocked. But boy, who would have thought that notes could be so damn heavy?

"Oh, I think you'll get away from that for this time," Rory answered unfazed. "But I suggest eating more spinach."

"Sure, Olive," Logan answered with an eye roll.

Rory smiled and took out her keys, fumbling with it. "So… nice evening," she hesitantly said.

Logan nodded. "That it was," he responded truthfully.

"Thanks for bringing me home – again," Rory continued after a moment.

Smiling, Logan stepped closer to her. "Anytime," he said softly, gazing into her eyes, before he started to lean down. He was going to kiss that girl, right here and right now. He couldn't _not _kiss her. Finally tasting those sweet lips was pretty much all he could think about for the last hour. And the best thing was that he was certain that she wanted that kiss as badly as he wanted it. He may not know much about what exactly was going on between him and Rory – but he knew when a girl wanted a kiss and a girl fumbling with her keys in front of her door was a dead giveaway.

Not to mention the way she raised her head towards him to meet him halfway. Just before their lips finally connected, he stopped, hovering over them for a moment, enjoying that moment to its fullest. He loved those moments, just before he first kissed someone, finally finding out if it felt like everything he had imagined – or if it even exceeded his expectation. He had a certain feeling that it would be the latter with Rory.

Unfortunately though, he wouldn't find out, as suddenly, her door got pulled open and Doyle got pushed right between him and Rory by an obviously mad Paris. "Get out!"

Doyle, ignoring Rory and Logan, quickly moved forward. "Paris, come on! It was just like a figure of speech! How many times do I have to tell you that I don't love Gilmore?"

Logan, desperately trying to not notice a naked Doyle clad only in a pink bathrobe, raised an eyebrow and looked at Rory who was quickly turning red. Okay… the moment was now officially and definitely ruined.

Fuck.

"Then why did you say it at all? But sure, I could have ignored your comment yesterday, but you just said it again!" Paris yelled.

"I just said that I love Gilmore's appetite and taste!" Doyle protested.

"See! There! You've said it again!" Paris furiously pointed at him.

"Paris! Come on! It's just that without her I doubt that there would have been this giant bottle of chocolate syrup and without that we couldn't just have had one of my best sexual experiences of my life!" Doyle desperately tried to defend himself. "So excuse me if I felt a bit grateful towards Gilmore!"

Oh, God… that was way too much information! Fighting off the nausea, Logan looked at Rory again. Hmm, was it possible to look pale and red at the same time? Well, Ace looked as if she was just trying to muster it.

"Oh, yeah, mister? Well, you sure just ruined it!" Paris hissed, glaring at Doyle.

"Come on, Paris! I…"

"Okay!" Rory interrupted. "That's it! No more words from you two or I'll feel the need to throw up right here and now and I'm for sure not gonna clean up that mess!"

"Keep out of it, Gilmore!" Paris told her. "Or do you perhaps want to protect your secret lover?"

"What?" Rory screeched and shook her head. "Okay, Paris, no more painting for you for at least a week because the fumes must have killed one brain cell too many. This is Doyle for Heaven's sake!"

"Hey!" Doyle protested at the same time as Paris narrowed her eyes. "Have you anything against my sex partner?"

"This is ridiculous! Paris, I don't care in the slightest with whom you have sex as long as you keep me and my food out of it!" Rory told her, glaring back at her. "And just to get this straight. Doyle has no interest in me whatsoever and as for me, I wouldn't want him even if he's the last man on Earth."

"I take offense on that, Gilmore," Doyle said with a frown.

Rory rounded on him. "God, Doyle, just shut up! In case you haven't noticed, I'm trying to help you here."

"Well, but…"

Shaking his head over such idiocy, Logan gave Doyle a kick. "Shove it, man," he hissed, mentally saying goodbye to his shoes. A shame. They were brand new. But he couldn't wear them again. They had just touched a naked Doyle.

Paris eyes narrowed down on Logan. "What are you doing here anyway?" she demanded to know with a frown.

Holding up his hands, Logan quickly backtracked. "Just dropping off Ace here," he said. He was so not going to get into a round with Paris while all she was wearing was a shirt he was pretty sure he had seen Doyle wearing once.

"Leave him alone, Paris," Rory said determinedly as well.

Doyle though looked at him and for the first time since Logan could remember didn't seem to shrink while faced with the Huntzberger heir. "Did you work on your article? Gilmore said she'd help you. You better have it finished by Friday, Huntzberger. Or _you_ can explain to your father why there, once again, isn't an article from you in the paper because I'll be far, far away the next time he's around."

Sighing, Logan shook his head. "You'll have it," he promised. The thought that Doyle apparently found enough backbone to actually talk to him like a real editor while standing naked, but to the pink bathrobe he was wearing, seriously disturbed Logan a bit. Not to mention that Geller still glared at him. In short, it was high time for him to get away from here. He searched for Rory's eyes. "I better go now," he told her in an apologizing tone.

Rory nodded with a sigh. "Probably. Thanks. And good luck with the article."

Logan nodded and with a last wary glance at Paris and Doyle, turned and left.

"Remember, Friday, Huntzberger!" Doyle called after him.

Logan quickened his pace.

"Enough. We'll end this drama now. Doyle, good night. Paris inside. But before you go, let me tell you that you better never use my sweets for your dirty plays again, understood?" He heard Rory saying just before he turned the corner, making him grin.

Boy, Ace wasn't kidding when she stated that her life wasn't boring at all.

* * *

Amused, grossed out and not just a bit frustrated Logan arrived at his own dorm.

So close. He and Ace had been so close to finally kiss and then…

One thing was for sure. He'd never hover before a kiss again.

With that promise, he opened his door, surprised to walk into a lighted common room. Strange. Lanny usually didn't stay up this long. Actually, wasn't he still on his trip to Washington? The mystery quickly got solved when Colin and Finn looked up at him.

"Back already?" Colin asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Apparently. What are you two doing here?" Logan asked with a frown, closing the door behind him.

"Waiting for you, of course. We're dying to hear how your date with Reporter Girl went," Finn said nonchalantly. "But when you didn't come back two hours ago we figured that you wouldn't come back 'til morning." He too raised an eyebrow. "Soooo, how was it?"

Shaking his head, Logan let the bag with Rory's notes drop to the floor and he took off his jacket. "Didn't you have something better to do tonight?"

"Oh, we went out to eat as we figured that you'd be away at least two hours," Colin said. "But no, we hadn't. So spill it already! How did it go? And why did it get so late?"

"Look, I'm tired. Can't we just…"

"Tired? I don't think so, mate," Finn said with a grin.

Logan sighed. He knew his best friends well enough to know that they wouldn't leave until they heard what they wanted. And sure enough, there was the question again.

"Come on, man? Why so uptight? Just tell us how your evening with Rory went," Colin urged him on.

Giving in, Logan looked at him. "It went well. It was – nice," he summarized with a smile.

"Ah, and I guess, judging from that stupid smile on your face, that you spent the whole time until now with the lovely Reporter Girl?" Finn asked with a leer. "Well, then I demand to hear more than just 'nice'!"

"Yeah, I come directly from her dorm," Logan exasperated, answered. He really was tired. And still frustrated for not having had the chance to finally get that kiss. Not to mention that he had a ton of notes to look through if he wanted to get that article done by Friday. And surprisingly, he wanted that done. Which meant that for the next two days he'd have to give himself a real kick in the ass and actually work? But most of all he wasn't in the mood to talk with Colin and Finn about his time with Rory now. Somehow, he felt the need to keep it private – surprising as really nothing had happened. Usually, he had no qualms about sharing his time with a girl with his friends and that included the sex. But with Rory – it was just different.

"More, more, more!" Finn demanded, practically bouncing on his place on the sofa.

Remembering Rory's incredulous evading tactic from earlier, Logan felt himself grin, and decided to copy it. "Sorry, mate, censored."

Surprise flickered over both, Finn's and Colin's faces. But while Finn's leer got wicked, Colin started to frown.

"Dirty! Now spill it mate!" Finn pleaded.

"What do you mean, censored?" Colin asked at the same time.

"Just that the rest of the evening is censored and you won't get more. So I suggest you just let it go and go to your own room now," Logan answered him, ignoring Finn.

He didn't expect Colin's reaction at all and was stunned when Colin abruptly jumped up, anger all over his face. "What?! Logan, I can't believe you! How could you do this?!"

"Huh?" Logan asked, staring confused at Colin.

"I really thought that you'd have more sense than to just screw her and then leave! Don't you understand? She's not that kind of a girl! Really, how could you?" Colin hissed, obviously getting angrier with each word.

"What?" Logan just stuttered, flabbergasted. What the hell was Colin talking about?

"But then I'm asking myself why I'm not even surprised! It's obvious that you're an idiot, not to mention that you never were anything but a bastard toward your fleet of girls. But stupid me thought that this time it would be different. That with her it would be different!" Colin shook his head, disgusted. "God, I can't stand you right now! I need to get away from here."

Thus said, Colin snapped up his jacket and stormed out without another look at Logan, the door slamming shut behind him.

Shocked and utterly confused, Logan stared after him before slowly turning to stare wide eyed at Finn. "Huh? What was that?" He shook his head in order to clear it. "What exactly is his problem?" he asked, truly mystified by Colin's sudden outburst.

But Finn was himself staring after Colin with a frown on his face, before he slowly turned his piercing eyes onto Logan. "Did you have sex with Rory tonight?" he asked bluntly.

Incredulous, Logan shook his head. "Of course not. Do I look as if I've gotten something tonight?" he asked, his shock slowly turning into anger.

This was not their business!

Finn sighed and got up. "Truthfully? I wasn't sure. That grin that beamed off your face right there sure implied other things, especially accompanied with your words, mate."

"I don't get it! What has that to do with Colin's behavior just now?" Logan impatiently demanded to know.

"You swear you did not have sex with Reporter Girl?" Finn though asked again.

"No, for Heaven's sake! How many times do I need to repeat that?" Logan confirmed, exasperated.

"Then, there's no problem, mate," Finn quietly said, picking up his jacket as well.

"I still don't get it!" Logan hissed. "What has me having sex with Rory anything to do with this?!"

Finn came over and stopped in front of him, meeting Logan's eyes squarely. "You having sex with Rory isn't a problem, mate. You screwing Rory though is a problem and not just for Colin," he lightly, but seriously said. He held Logan's eyes for a long moment longer before he turned and headed to the door.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Logan asked with a frown and a very bad feeling in his gut.

Finn opened the door and looked back at Logan. "Just don't fuck it up, Logan. Literally and figuratively." Without another word, he left, closing the door softly behind him.

Dazed, Logan stared at the closed door.

What the fuck…?

* * *

He hadn't been able to sleep, the whole evening's event playing havoc in his mind. At least he had managed to go through every one of Rory's file. She had done a thorough job – there was almost nothing he needed to research himself. All that was left for him to do was his own interviews and hunting down Professor Warrick and the rest of the people he wanted to interview was just the right distraction for Logan. It helped him avoid Finn, Colin and Rory for one and then it also gave him enough to reflect on what all had happened last night.

He couldn't understand Finn and Colin's problem. Nothing had happened with Rory. And even if it would have… what did it concern Finn and Colin? Nothing. Nothing at all. And Colin! He couldn't believe Colin! What right did he have to criticize Logan! As if he was any bit better than Logan! At least Logan never treated one of his dates with that arrogant attitude Colin seldom let go, even towards his dates!

Colin had no right to criticize anything what he and Rory did! Nor was it any of his business! Nor Finn's!

And what the hell did they mean that he couldn't screw Rory? He never had planned on screwing her. Oh yeah, he planned to have sex with her and no one but Rory was going to stop him from that – but not screw her. What the hell did they even mean when they told him to not screw Rory? He didn't screw girls, did he? He went out with them, bought them dinner, brought them home, kissed them, had sex with them. If it had been good he'd go out with them again, if not he'd move on, but never without a word. Yeah, he went out a lot, dated a lot, had a lot of sex – he was young and male and single, so why not? But he wasn't one of those who would keep a girl hanging or just left without saying anything. It only caused trouble and Logan sure didn't need more trouble. And it wasn't as if the girls didn't know exactly where he stood. He made it always very clear right from the beginning so no girl held any false hope. Just because he went out with her didn't mean that this would become a regular thing. Any dreams to get him for more than a few dates or in a few cases as a fuck-buddy were futile. He didn't have girlfriends, nor anything remotely similar to a relationship. This system worked just fine and it worked fairly well. If any girl got her hopes up despite the facts, he couldn't help it. And he'd make sure to stay clear of that girl later on.

But he didn't screw around.

Besides, it wasn't as if Finn or Colin were any better than him. He knew for a fact that Finn had as many notches on his bedpost as he. And he strongly suspected that Colin might actually have more than either of them, because he sure went through girls like going through socks. In fact, if anyone was screwing around here, then it was Colin!

Ugh…

"Why the sour face?"

His head snapped up to see no other than Rory standing in front of him. It looked as if he unconsciously had walked towards the coffee cart in front of the Sterling Library though it was beyond him why. He had wanted to head to the opposite direction. "Hey, Ace… didn't see you there," Logan greeted her, absentmindedly. Why would he come here?

"Obviously… While you walked over here it was only due to sheer acrobatic talent that you didn't run into someone at least three times, not to mention the bicycle that nearly toppled over because you just walked right in front of it." Rory tilted her head. "Want to tell me what brought that thunderous expression on this face I usually only know smirking?"

Was she joking? Exaggerating? Or had he really missed all that? Damn it. He didn't know. But then, he hadn't known that he was all of a sudden walking here either. He took a deep breath and it actually felt good. "I'm pretty positive you already saw me not smirking – at least some times," he answered, trying to find his usual casual tone.

She shrugged. "I might have… so, what happened?" she gently asked.

Logan avoided her eyes. "Just had a fight," he answered evasively.

"Oh… with your parents?" she asked, even gentler.

Before he could stop himself, he found himself answering her truthfully. "No, I actually had a fight with Finn and Colin. Well, more Colin than Finn."

"Really?" she asked surprised and frowned. "I wouldn't have guessed that you three fight a lot."

"We don't," Logan said. They bantered, teased, mocked and taunted – but they seldom fought. And usually when they fought he knew just why they were fighting. Not this time though and that was annoying as hell.

"So… what caused the fight then?" Rory asked quietly.

'You,' was already on the tip of his tongue but Logan was able to hold himself back from saying that. Instead, he shook his head, still avoiding her eyes. "No offense – but I don't want to talk about it," he told her, uncomfortably.

For a while, he could feel her eyes on him.

"Okay."

Puzzled, Logan finally looked back at her to meet her eyes. "Okay? That's all?" he asked, unbelieving. Somehow he had expected her to nag and probe him until he either left exasperated or would spill his guts. That was what girls did, wasn't it? He didn't expect a simple 'okay'.

Rory offered him a small smile. "I hate it when I have a fight with Mom or Lane. It's horrible. But even more I hate it when people would nag me constantly in order to try to find out just what happened. As if they could understand anyway."

She was voicing his exact thoughts and somehow that felt very – strange. But strange in a good way. "Thanks," he quietly said.

"No need to," she waved it away and slightly turned away before she looked back at him after a moment. "But just so you know: the soul baring goes both ways: _If_ you want to talk, you know where to find me," she told him softly.

Holding her eyes, he nodded slowly. "I know," he said, barely above a whisper.

Suddenly, he was blinded by one giant smile. "Good. Now come."

But Logan just raised an eyebrow at her.

"The best cure for such a thing is coffee. And even better, getting treated to coffee," she said and walked over to the cart.

"Coffee?" Logan repeated, dumbfounded and slowly followed her. Now, whiskey or scotch he could see – but coffee?

Ace just nodded and stepped up to the cart. "Hey Richie. A cappuccino and one large latte macchiato and could you please add a spoon of chocolate into it? And don't hold back with cream and sugar, will you?" she ordered, turning pleading eyes onto the coffee guy.

"Sure Rore… had a fight?" Richie asked sympathetic while he fulfilled her order.

"Not me. Just trying to cheer up my friend here," Rory answered with a smile and handed Richie the money who in turn handed her the cups. "Thanks Richie. Keep the change."

Richie started to shake his head, but Rory had already turned away and stepped to Logan who had watched the exchange with amazement. His Ace sure had the coffee cart guys on campus wrapped around her little finger – and he honestly couldn't blame them. She pushed the macchiato into his hands and before he knew it, she had guided him to a nearby bench where he suddenly found himself sitting and sipping his coffee.

Damn was this coffee good or what!

Logan glanced at Rory, but she just sat there drinking her cappuccino – with a secret smile though. Shaking his head slightly, he returned to sip his coffee.

They sat for quite a while there, saying nothing, but Logan found himself actually enjoying the silence. This was strange as he never had been a believer of the comfortable silence thing. The only silence he knew between people was the tense silence, filled with unspoken words and usually those words were words of disappointment and failure. But it wasn't like that now. It was just – nice, soothing.

Eventually though, Rory started to speak again. "So… rumor has it that you've been seen running around campus all day to pester people for their opinion. You've even been seen having lunch with Professor Warrick. It apparently looked as if you were actually working there."

Logan smiled. "See? One tiny article and already my reputation goes to hell."

"Oh, I wouldn't be too worried about that. People usually don't have long memories: as soon as they see you partying around again they would have forgotten this Twilight Zone day," Rory reassured him with a grin.

"Puh, good to hear," Logan mockingly sighed with relief.

"Well, I wouldn't have wanted your world to crash down here," Rory deadpanned, but then looked curiously at him. "And how did it go?" she asked.

"Why, Ace, you trying to spy on my article?" Logan asked with amusement.

She shrugged. "Well as I lend you my notes I think I have a right to know how your article is progressing."

Logan found himself grinning. "You think so?"

She nodded eagerly. Ha… he should have known that she would barely be able to wait to get details on his article. But she wouldn't get anything, at least not from him.

"It's progressing," he coolly answered.

"Logan!" Rory protested.

Logan shook his head. "Now really, Ace… Don't you remember a reporter's first rule? Never share information unless it brings you a lot more than you loose. I may not write much but I sure know the ropes."

"You won't tell me anything?" she asked, frowning.

"Not a word," Logan confirmed, shaking his head to emphasize it.

"I can't believe you," Rory mentioned, her frown getting deeper.

"You better do, Ace. You'll have to wait until the article comes out like everyone else," Logan told her, his grin getting wider and wider. Nope, she definitely didn't like that.

"That's not fair!"

Logan raised an eyebrow. "And since when is life fair?" he asked with a smirk.

"Hmpf…" Rory muttered and turned annoyed eyes on him. "Well then, as I can see that you're working now, I'm sure you won't need my notes anymore, right?"

"You revoking your help?" Logan asked, his other eyebrow rising as well.

"No!" Rory quickly denied. "Just thought that you won't need them anymore now. And as you've seen I really like my notes so I'd like them back so I can file them properly."

"You file your notes?" Logan asked amused.

"You don't?" Rory countered back, now raising an eyebrow herself.

"Okay, Ace, peace!" Logan pleaded with a chuckle. "But if you don't mind I'd like to keep them until I'm actually finished. So how about I give them back to you tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow? Tomorrow's Friday," Rory said with a frown. "Don't you have that party?"

Logan nodded. "Only in the evening, Ace. So how about we meet in the pub right before it's time to head out to New York? I can give you your notes so you can enjoy yourself with filing them later on." And when he said later on then he meant later on. A lot later. "Or do you absolutely need to go to your grandparents tomorrow?" he asked, suddenly remembering her Friday night dinners – and fully knowing that she still would have more than enough time to head over to Hartford should she not want to come with him to New York. But she did want to come, didn't she? That was at least the impression he had gotten last night.

"Uh no…" she slowly said, her eyes hesitantly meeting his. "No, I think I can get out of it," she said softly.

"Good…" Logan said softly, while finding himself forgetting pretty much everything else while staring into those wonderful blue depths of her.

He had no idea how much time had passed until Rory slowly bowed her head, a sweet pink coloring her cheeks. Taking a deep breath, Logan nervously drank the rest of his coffee and looked at his watch. Damn. He needed to go. He was meeting Will Barrows, the leader of the student opposition in a few minutes. Reluctantly, he got up.

"I've another interview scheduled in twenty minutes," he apologized. "So see you tomorrow?"

Rory nodded, not raising her head though.

"Five okay for you?" Logan asked.

Now finally, she looked up at him again. "Okay," she quietly agreed with a nod.

"Okay… thanks for the coffee," Logan said, raising the empty cup.

"Anytime." She smiled. "You better go now if you don't want to be late."

Crap!

"Yeah. See you, Ace!" he hurriedly said his goodbye and rushed away, barely keeping himself back to not run – at least until he was out of sight.

While he rushed over the campus he couldn't help but notice that he was smiling. He didn't know how she had done it, but she sure had made his bad mood go away.

* * *

Once he was done with all the interviews Logan had gone back to his dorm to start writing his article. The whole evening he had locked himself in his room and worked. By four am he was finished with it, content with how it had turned out. It was a good article. One of his bests actually. Well, it would still need a few rereads but he had decided to do that once he had gotten a bit of sleep and the letters wouldn't swim in front of his eyes anymore.

Unfortunately, he got rudely awakened only a few hours later by his cell phone ringing with the tunes of 'Carry'. Great. Just how he wanted to be woken up. Why hadn't he thought of turning off his cell? He let it ring for five minutes later. But, Logan knew his mother and wasn't surprised when not a minute later, his land line started to ring as well. Oh, yeah, his mother wouldn't stop until she had reached him somehow and even if it took a call to the University President to call him into his office. Probably she wanted to finalize the details for tonight's party. Sighing, Logan reached out to take the phone.

"Yeah?"

"Is that any way to answer the phone?" his mother immediately started chiding him. But then, he wasn't used to anything else.

"I just woke up, Mom. What do you want?" Logan asked with another sigh.

"It's already ten and you just woke up? Logan, really, when will you start to take school seriously? Don't you have classes?" his mother asked and Logan could almost see her big frown. No doubt she thought he had been out all night – and Logan had no intention whatsoever of correcting her in her assumption. Besides, usually this probably would have been true anyway.

"Mom… just say what you called for," Logan tiredly told her, closing his eyes and wishing himself back to sleep and his sweet dreams.

His mother sighed. "Well okay. Just wanted to tell you that the party starts at eight pm at the Plaza."

"I already knew that," Logan pointed out with a frown. He was pretty sure that that hardly was the only reason his mother had called.

"Oh, but one never knows with you, Logan… I just wanted to make sure you've got the details," his mother told him sarcastically. "Ah, and I almost forgot: Jewel called yesterday. She's coming for a visit and will attend the party tonight as well. So please don't think about bringing one of your – dates with you. I arranged for you two to sit together so basically you're each other's company. Isn't that nice?"

What?!?!

Suddenly wide awake, Logan sat up. "Wait a minute Mom! I can't. I mean, I already asked someone to come with me and she's…"

"Nonsense, Logan!" his mother though interrupted him sharply. "I know your usual dates. I'm sure there's no problem for you to reschedule your tête-à-tête with that girl. Jewel's coming a long way and I thought you'll look forward to see her again. It has been a while since we've seen her after all."

"Sure, Mom, but you don't understand! I can't…" Logan started to explain. Rory wasn't one of his usual dates after all!

"Of course you can, Logan. And I don't want to hear another word now. We'll expect you tonight at seven, alone," his mother said threateningly, her voice having turned to ice.

"But, Mom!" Logan protested but it was already too late, the line was dead.

For a moment, Logan stared incredulously at the phone in his hand before he pressed for the dial tone with a curse and quickly dialed home. After twenty rings, he disconnected and tried it with his mother's cell.

Nothing.

Letting out a series of curses, Logan jumped out of bed to angrily pace his floor. The nerve of his mother! How could she expect him to simply un-invite Rory?!?! Sure, Jewel was an old friend of the family, one he actually liked. And yeah, he did look forward to seeing her again, but not tonight! Damn it, couldn't she have picked another day to come? Had it to be the day he more or less had promised to take Rory along to the party? What should he do now? He didn't want to go back on his word to Rory. He _wanted_ Rory with him tonight, wanted her to meet Seymour Hersh. Wanted to have all this quality time with her – and perhaps even a little bit more if he could convince her to go out to town with him afterwards.

But he knew his mother. She'd be a bitch if he took Rory along. Probably, she'd insist that there wasn't enough place and Rory would be lucky to even get a seat. They for sure wouldn't be together, his mother would make sure of that. No, Rory couldn't enjoy the party like that. Probably she'd even think that she'd get this horrible treatment because of who she was, especially so close to that damn funeral. No way would Logan make her go through that.

It was best if he really went back on his word to Rory, for her own good. Not that he expected Rory to understand that.

God, how was he supposed to tell her that she couldn't come after all?

Cursing once more, Logan snapped up some clothes and headed for a quick shower. In record time, he was finished, dressed and out of his room, heading over to Colin and Finn's suite, letting himself in with his key as he found the door locked.

"Colin! Finn!" he called.

"Colin!" He moved over to Colin's room but when he entered he found it empty. Damn it, Colin probably went to one of his classes.

Frustrated, Logan left to head over to Finn's room but stopped dead when Finn was already standing by his door in his boxers, totally disheveled. "Would you stop the bloody screaming in the fricking morning?" he demanded with a glare.

Relieved, Logan went over to Finn. "Finn! Thank God! I need your help!"

Frowning, Finn yawned. "Can't it wait 'til later?" he grumbled.

"I just got a call from my mother," Logan simply started.

"My deepest sympathy," Finn murmured and headed over to the counter.

Logan followed him. "She called to tell me that Jewel's coming to town and that I'm supposed to be her companion for tonight's party!"

Yawning again, Finn put the coffeemaker to work. "And the problem? You like Jewel. Will make the party bearable."

"But I already kind of asked Rory to come with me!" Logan told him, exasperated.

Now, Finn frowned. "Reporter Girl?"

"Yeah! You know another Rory?" Logan impatiently asked and started to pace again, ruffling up his hair. "What am I supposed to do Finn? I've got to un-invite her! How can I do that? I don't want her thinking that I don't want to take her with me. I do! But if I bring her along, despite Mom's warning, Mom will rip into her like a mad bloodhound! I can't do that to her!"

Shaking his head, Finn closed his eyes. "It's bloody too early for your personal soap opera," he muttered darkly.

This wasn't helping! "Finn!"

With a sigh, Finn opened his eyes again to glare at Logan. "Well sorry, mate, but I'm not functioning well this early, without anything in me either. You should know that."

"Then see to it that you get something down!" Logan impatiently told him, pointing at the bar and the bubbling coffee. "I need serious help here!"

Finn threw him another glare and murmured things under his breath Logan chose not to hear. Instead, he nervously paced. Why was this damn coffee taking so long?

Suddenly, the door opened and Colin came in, stopping when he saw the distraught Logan in their common room. He looked from Logan to Finn and slowly closed the door behind him. "Hey, Logan," he greeted Logan somewhat carefully.

With a frown, Logan stared at him. Why was Colin acting so strangely? Since when did they greet themselves so formally? Oh… right. Their fight. Logan had totally forgotten about that. Rory's latte macchiato sure had done the trick.

Logan decided to simply act as if nothing had happened. "Thank God you're here, Colin! I need advice and sleepy head here wasn't a big help so far."

"Thanks a lot," Finn sarcastically remarked.

Again, Colin looked from one to the other before he slowly put down his books on the nearest table and turned to face Logan. "What's up?" he asked with a frown and Logan knew that their fight was forgotten for Colin as well. Good. He wouldn't want that fight prolonged after all. Not to mention that he really hated fighting with Colin or Finn.

"Three guesses," Finn snorted.

Colin briefly looked at him and sighed. "Rory."

"Candidate has hundred points," Finn muttered and snapped the full coffee pot away to pour himself a large cup.

Probably, Logan should be worried that they automatically assumed that his trouble had something to do with his Ace – and that they were dead right about that. But right now, he had bigger problems at hand. "She went on and on about how wonderful it must be to meet Seymour Hersh in person and how big of a fan she is of him so I kind of asked her to come with me to the party tonight," Logan quickly explained again.

"Problem?" Colin asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Parental order getting delivered courtesy of the _lovely_ Shira to don't even dare bring his own date as she already reserved him for Jewel," Finn summarized and sighed after his first gulp of coffee.

"Jewel's in town?" Colin asked surprised.

"Colin!" Logan hissed. "Not the point! What am I supposed to tell Rory?"

"Right," Colin sighed and rubbed at his temples. "Why not the truth?"

Logan and Finn both stared incredulously at him.

"Okay, so bad idea," Colin conceded and frowned, thinking. "What do you mean, '_kind_ of asked her out'?"

"What?" Logan asked confused.

"You said you kind of asked her out. What does this mean? Did you or didn't you ask her to come to the party?" Colin elaborated.

Oh… "Well…" Logan frowned and looked out of the window. That was actual a damn good question. Did he ask her specifically out? "No," he answered slowly, shaking his head. "I never asked her directly if she wanted to come with me." He bit his lip. "But I sure hinted it. And she hinted back that she'd love to come. It… I guess it was something of a mutual silent agreement."

Colin glanced at Finn and the two exchanged a long look that made Logan frowning. He was so getting tired of those looks.

Finally, Colin sighed. "Well, then your problem's solved. You simply pretend you've never had this silent agreement."

Logan didn't like that. "But…" his voice trailed off. Could he really do that?

"Look, I agree it's not ideal, but this way is still better than any of the other options, right?" Colin quietly said. "Best you avoid her today altogether. Then it's weekend which she'll probably spend home anyway. By the time you see her again there's already grass over the whole thing and the rest you'll amend by asking her out officially, not this vague thing. And then you'll better treat her to an unforgettable evening."

Hmm… perhaps that really could work. There was only one problem. He had already promised to meet her today and no way was he going to back out of that date as well.

"Perhaps you're right. There's just one problem: I already asked her to meet me at five in the pub. We were supposed to head out to New York from there," Logan told him.

Colin frowned. "I thought you didn't ask her to the party?"

"And I didn't. Officially, we're meeting for me to return her notes which she let me use for my article," Logan explained. "I can't ditch her then as well. In fact, I won't."

"Why not?" Finn asked, coming with his coffee over to flap down onto the couch. "You could call her and tell her that you need to head out earlier."

Logan frowned. "No, I can't do that to her. It wouldn't be – fair." It wasn't quite the right word but he couldn't come up with a better one.

Finn stared at him for a long moment before he looked over to Colin.

"You're right, you have to go," Colin agreed, with a small nod towards Finn.

What was going on between the two of them? Logan narrowed his eyes but then let it go. While worriedly running his hands through his hair again, Logan sat down. "But what should I tell her? I can't just drop the files and leave her stranded there. I know she counted on coming with me. Hell, I _had_ every intention to take her with me!"

Finn slapped him on the back. "As much as I'd like to play your Cyrano I don't think that would work. I'm sorry, mate, but I fear you've got to find your own words." He was quiet for a moment. "But thankfully you sure have your way with words. So I'm confident you'll find something."

"Finn's right," Colin nodded. "But I do think it's best you stick to the original plan: pretend to be oblivious to that silent promise. Chat with her like you usual do for a while and when it's time to go you'll just say your goodbyes and leave."

"You're a guy after all," Finn chirped in. "And gals think anyway that we're too stupid to understand anything that's not spelled out to us. Or that we remember much more than our names and the motor size of our cars and just how many homeruns the quarterback made twenty years ago."

"Wrong sport," Logan automatically corrected.

Finn shrugged. "Whatever. All that counts is that that's what the ladies think and it's their fault if we take advantage of that assumption from time to time."

Logan shook his head. "I don't like this," he stated darkly.

"We get that. But what else do you want to do if you can't to take her along?" Colin asked gently.

Logan met his eyes. "I don't want to hurt her," he admitted quietly.

Finn reached out to squeeze his shoulder. "We know that. And you won't. She'll be disappointed, but you still can make sure she won't get hurt."

With a sigh, Logan nodded. He hoped they were right and that it would work. They could say what they wanted, he still felt bad about ditching her. Especially after the progress he felt they had made over the past couple of days. And he hated the thought that he had to leave her stranded in the pub tonight.

Hmm… there was perhaps something he could do at least about that. He looked pleadingly at his friends. "Do me a favor guys – be there for her once I've left. I don't want her to be alone."

Colin nodded. "When are you meeting her?"

"At five, over in the pub." Quickly, Logan made a rough estimate of his time schedule. "I won't have to leave for at least half an hour."

"Don't worry, mate! Your fair maiden will properly be taken care of!" Finn promised, slapping him once again.

"Thanks…" Logan sincerely thanked his friends and stood up with a sigh. "I should go back to my place. I still need to finish my article."

"Better you than me," Finn nodded yawning and stood up, stretching. "I think I'll go back to bed for a while. Give Beverly Hills Girl a kiss from me and tell her I'm dying from a broken heart here."

Logan nodded and Finn vanished into his room while Logan went over to the door to leave.

"Logan?"

He looked questioningly at Colin.

"I'm sorry for the other night. I kind of – overreacted," Colin said quietly.

Smiling, Logan waved it away. "Dunno what you're talking about."

Colin nodded, relieved.

With a last look at his friend, Logan left. As soon as the door closed behind him, the smile vanished though.

This would be a loooooong day.

* * *

Nervous as hell, Logan arrived at the pub five minutes too early and was surprised to see that he was actually there before Rory. He wasn't quite sure if that was a good thing. Sighing, he went over to the counter where Rick was reading a paper. It was quiet in the pub with only a few people, still a bit too early for the evening rush.

"A rum coke and a cappuccino please," Logan ordered. He was sure that Rory wouldn't mind him already getting a cappuccino for her. And he needed something to calm his nerves and a little rum would just do the trick.

Rick nodded and put his paper away. "Meeting the sweet brunette again?"

"Hmm?" Logan asked, too busy to keep an eye on the door.

Rick smiled. "You're here early, ordering cappuccino and keeping a nervous glance on the door. So I assume you expect the brunette you keep hanging around with lately. Gotta say, didn't expect you to fall so early, let alone for a sweetheart like that girl."

"What?" Logan asked baffled, tearing his eyes away from the door to stare at Rick.

_What?_

"But I've got to hand it to you, you really showed some taste by settling down with that girl. She seems like she's worth it. Damn… I'm still waiting for a girl like that walking into my life," Rick chatted with a grin.

_Settling down?_

How on Earth would get Rick such strange ideas? Logan frowned. "Listen, Rick, I think you've got there something…"

"Hey, Logan! Sorry I'm late!" Rory appeared at his side, looking apologetically at him. "Had some sort of a girlfriend emergency when Lane called, totally flipping out."

Still slightly disturbed by Rick's words, Logan turned to look at Rory – and forgot about everything but the girl in front of him who was just taking off her coat to reveal a decently teasing red sweater and a black skirt, simple but elegant and sexy as hell. Combined with the cute way she had done her hair and the light make-up… he desperately needed that drink to wet his suddenly very dry throat. Not to mention the ice in it to cool down the heat that rushed through his body.

But, God ,she was beautiful.

And it was obvious that she had put quite an effort into looking nice tonight – and surely not for just an evening at the bar or even dinner at her grandparents.

Fuck, fuck, fuck… he hated this!

Feeling like the world's biggest asshole, he looked away and turned to Rick to pay for their drinks. "No problem, Ace. I hope everything's fine?"

She nodded. "Yeah, she just freaked out about something that happened last night."

"Do I want to know? Or even have a chance to understand?" Logan asked with a smile.

"Probably no to both questions," Rory answered with a laugh.

Logan nodded and took Rory's coffee and his drink that Rick handed him with a twinkle he tried to ignore. "Cappuccino okay for you?" he asked, admittedly a bit late.

"Of course! You even need to ask?" she asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Well, one never knows… perhaps you fell addicted to Sheridan by now," Logan answered with a shrug and nodded to a free table right by the windows.

Rory surprised him by chuckling. "Perhaps later."

"Ace, I'm shocked. Did you just agree to drink something alcoholic on your own free will?" Logan mockingly gasped.

"Spare yourself the smug grin, Huntzberger," Rory told him with a light frown as she sat down at the table Logan had pointed out to her.

"Me? Smug? Never!" Logan gasped.

She just narrowed her eyes at him, causing him to grin. "Okay, okay, I'll shut up now," he promised.

"Good boy," she nodded and sipped at her cappuccino, sighing contently. "They sure make damn fine coffee for a pub," she remarked.

Good boy… she had no idea. Inwardly sighing, he nodded. "Actually, most of the coffee you can get at a pub is decent. But how should you know that after all, with you constantly hiding in your dorm or the library."

Rory made a face. "As you have seen the other night there's a lot more entertainment happening at my place than here."

Laughing, Logan nodded. "True, true, but then I personally can attest to that on the honor of having seen Doyle in a fluffy pink robe that was, considering that he was most definitely naked otherwise, a little bit too short for my taste."

Actually, he had had a hard time blocking the image and not laugh out loud when he had handed in his article to Doyle this afternoon.

With a grin, Rory shrugged. "But then you can say it's truly been an unforgettable moment that probably will make you laugh for years – once you've got over the shock. About how many nights at a pub can you say that?"

"Sorry, Ace, but I could have lived without that visual," Logan said and shook his head. And most of all, he could have done without the interruption and therefore the missed kiss.

"Ah, that's just the shock. I know that. You'll need a bit longer to get over that," Ace nonchalantly waved his comment away.

"Do I?" Logan asked amused.

"Trust me," Rory nodded and took another sip of her coffee.

"If you say so…" Logan said, unconvinced and took one long sip of his rum coke. He was at a loss for words. What the hell should he say? He knew his Ace was the easiest girl to talk to. You could talk about more or less everything with her but sports and it was guaranteed to be an interesting conversation – and if you actually talked about sports you could bet it was going to be funny. Yet here he was, his mind totally blank but to the one topic he couldn't talk about: the party she wasn't going to and had no idea about that yet.

"I landed on a re-run of 'Scarecrow and Mrs. King' this afternoon while flipping through the channels," he eventually mentioned. Television somehow seemed like a natural choice.

"Really? Which episode?" Rory asked interested.

"The one where they go against a big fishing company," Logan answered.

"Oh! Where Lee's dating that classy girl, Leslie, right? I love that episode! The scene where Lee calls Leslie Amanda? So romantic!" she exclaimed with enthusiasm.

Logan raised an eyebrow. "Oh, yeah, so romantic… I bet Leslie agrees totally with you there," he remarked sarcastically.

Rory gave him a light slap on his arm. "Or the scene in the beginning, after the bombing, where Lee comes rushing to the scene to desperately look for Amanda, his fear and worry written all over his face?" She sighed dreamily.

Amused, Logan shook his head. Who would have thought that his Ace was deep down such a romantic… her who read My Lai 4 at twelve? "Ace, I'm sure the senator who got blown up really found that romantic as well."

"You're a spoilsport, Huntzberger," Rory told him with a slight frown.

"Just being realistic here," Logan countered back.

"Well, realism has to stand back at such a wonderful, romantic relationship like theirs," Rory said, crossing her arms in front of her.

"And what makes them so special unlike, I dunno, Scully and Mulder?" Logan wanted to know.

"There's just this spark between them that never leaves. And it's always great to see a womanizer like Lee slowly but certainly fall for one woman, especially when he's so cute while he struggles against it," Rory explained, glancing at him.

Suddenly, Logan didn't feel comfortable with their topic at all anymore. "And how realistic is that?" he asked, avoiding her eyes by taking another sip of his drink.

Rory shrugged. "I dunno… but don't they say even the greatest have to fall one day?"

They needed to change the topic. No way was Logan walking this dangerous territory. Just why had he had to come up with this stupid episode? But at least this was television. There was a lot more they could talk about television. In fact, hadn't they yet to finish their favorite epoch shows list?

"Okay, Ace, favorite nineties show?" he asked her, hoping that the change wasn't too abrupt.

He wasn't sure, but Rory at least didn't show any reaction to the slight topic change as she answered without hesitation. "'The Office'."

"Really?" Logan asked surprised. He hadn't expected that.

"Of course. It's genius – and don't dare to say something else or I may have to seriously hurt you," Rory warned him. "It's like a religion."

Logan held up his hands. "Hey, I wasn't going to say anything."

"No? I hardly doubt that," Rory said suspiciously.

"Sorry to disappoint you," Logan said with a smile. "But as I've never seen the show I really can't say anything."

Rory's eyes widened as she gasped. "What?"

Puzzled, Logan raised an eyebrow. "I've never seen 'The Office'."

"You _haven't_?" she asked incredulous.

"Nope. Never interested me much. Nor did it run at any practical time for me," Logan explained.

Shaking her head, Rory laid a hand over her heart. "Be still my hurting heart… Really, Logan. How can you say it never interested you much when you haven't seen it? And you know, there's this terrific invention, called VCR, even better: TiVo. Wonderful little thing that allows you to practically not miss anything anymore."

"I know what a VCR is or TiVo," Logan said, rolling his eyes.

"Well, obviously you forgot its purpose," she told him, again shaking her head.

Logan laughed. "Now come on… don't you overreact a tad here?"

At first, Rory vehemently shook her head. "Nope, definitely not. And if you like your life you should never say that to anyone with two X chromosomes." After a moment of trying to keep a straight face though, she started to grin as well. "But thus said, maybe you're right. It's just… 'The Office', Logan! 'The Office'! How can you not have seen at least a few episodes?!"

"Big crime, huh?" Logan stated.

"Yep, definitely, at least in my book," Rory nodded, but laughed. "I can't believe you've never seen 'The Office'!"

"I feel very stupid," Logan half apologized, though he had no idea why he should apologize for that.

"Well, you should," Rory told him. "It's brilliant. Especially the fourth time you see it."

Fourth time? Was she serious? Of course she was serious. This was his Ace after all, the girl that had seen 'The Passion of the Christ' twenty-eight times. But why four times? "What happens the fourth time you see it?" he asked curiously.

"You can actually understand what they're saying. I have them all on DVD. You can borrow them if you want, but only if you promise to abide by the fourth time rule," Rory offered him.

It would never stop to amaze him how his Ace could talk about something simple like a show with such passion. If she was this passionate here… No, no, no… not the time and place to go _there_!

"I'll abide by your fourth time rule," Logan promised and pointed a finger at her. "If it's as good as you say, I'll raise you a fifth."

Rory nodded, pleased. "Deal."

Not quite sure to what he had just agreed, Logan found himself at a loss of words again. He felt that the television topic was definitely over now. Hey, there were still her notes!

"Oh, here, I almost forgot your notes," he said and bowed down to his bag to heave her notes onto the table.

"Oh… I hope they helped," Rory said.

Logan smirked. "They did. Some guy tried to mug me earlier and I beat him to death with them," he teased her.

"Hey! I like my research!" Rory protested in defense of her notes.

"I like your research, too," Logan assured her, with a true smile this time. "And, thank you," he sincerely thanked her.

Rory beamed. "It helped?"

Logan looked into his glass. Oh, yeah, they had helped a great lot. So much that he was pretty sure that she had done several of the research only for him and he knew exactly that that was quite some leg work. And as thanks for that, he now would have to ditch her.

"Story is done, Doyle's safe, all is right with the world," he answered, trying to keep his bitterness down.

"You're welcome," Rory said softly with a nod.

He knew that Rory didn't expect anything in return for her help… and that was just making everything worse. Depressed, Logan still stared into his glass. It was time to go, he knew that. But he didn't want to go. And he didn't want to leave Rory. He wanted to take her with him. Or stay right here with her. He had actually thought about just not going to that damn party. But he knew there would be hell to pay from his father _and_ his mother and it simply wasn't worth the trouble. Or so he had thought. Now, right sitting beside his beautiful Ace, he wasn't so sure about that anymore.

"So…" he finally said in the end and looked hesitantly at her.

"So…" Rory said.

Logan nodded curtly and then had to look down again, not able to keep looking into her eyes. He hated himself for what he was about to do. "It's been fun," he said, truthfully. Up until that moment it had been fun after all.

Rory nodded. "Yeah, it has been," she agreed.

Once again, Logan nodded, still not able to look her into the eyes again. "Okay, I should get going. I'm headed to New York," he reluctantly said and quickly raised his glass to drain it.

"Right." Rory nodded. "For your dad's party."

Logan put down the glass. "Yep," he said and nervously tapped with his fingers against his glass, trying to will himself to look at her. It was the least he owed her after all. But he just didn't want to see her disappointment. In the end though, he raised his eyes to gaze into the blue eyes he was sure would haunt him for the rest of the night – if not longer. "So, have a nice weekend," he wished her and cringed when he saw the disappointment he had feared to see enter her eyes.

"Oh, yeah, you too. Have a nice weekend," Rory wished him after a moment with a brave smile before she quickly looked down.

But not fast enough to hide the way her face fell. Feeling miserable and low, Logan quickly looked down. It actually _would_ have been worth to face his parent's wrath. Anything to keep her from hurting. But it was too late now, the damage done.

"And hey, don't be a stranger," Logan tried to say casually, but in reality, pretty much pleaded to her. He didn't want to lose what they had accomplished so far. He didn't want to lose her. Frustrated, he leaned down to get his bag.

Rory gave a nod. "Ummhmmm," she articulated with another brave smile.

Never having heard quite such a sound from her, Logan brought himself to look at her again for a brief moment. Desperately wanting to reassure in some way, he tried to smile as well, but failed miserably. Aggravated, Logan got up to leave. But he couldn't just leave like that. Not knowing something better to do though, he reached out and patted her shoulder blade. And then, he quickly left, not able to bear it for one moment longer.

Once outside, he stopped to take a deep breath.

"Logan?"

At Colin's hesitant question, Logan looked up to see Colin and Finn standing in front of him.

"You okay, mate?" Finn asked quietly.

Logan looked back, seeing Rory still sitting at their table with her back towards them, alone. To leave her in there was the hardest thing he ever had to do in his life. And he sure knew now why he avoided getting into such situations. It was hell.

He shook his head. "Go to her. Make sure she's okay," he roughly told his friends and then turned to hurry away towards the parking lot.

He was going to kill his mother for having forced him to do this.

* * *

"You're late," his mother greeted him.

Logan shrugged. He knew he was late. He deliberately was late. For an hour he had made Frank make detours. They even went through a McDonalds drive-thru. Then he had gone up to the suite his parents had reserved for the family to take another hour to shower and get dressed – ignoring the suit, white shirt and black tie his mother had laid out for him and instead chose something more casual with a turtleneck. So when he finally arrived at the party he was almost an hour late.

"I told you not to be late," his mother frowned.

"Traffic, Mom," he said curtly and scanned the room. Boring, boring, boring, boring… oh, very boring. Great, not one decent person to talk to so far. "Is Honor here as well?" he wanted to know.

"No, she said Josh's family had also some party where they had to attend," his mother answered in a degrading way. Of course it seemed impossible to her that anything could be more important than this party – especially anything Josh's family was organizing.

"Lucky her," Logan sighed and took another survey of the room. He frowned. "Where are Dad and the guest of honor?" he asked. He wasn't keen on seeing his father, but the sooner he had made sure that his father had seen him, the sooner he could get out of here. Well, as soon as he had a moment to talk to Seymour Hersh.

"Oh, you know your Dad. Can't pass on an opportunity to talk business. They should be back soon," his mother said with a sigh.

Good. Logan nodded and looked around. There was someone else he hadn't seen so far. "Now, where's Jewel? Trip to the restroom?" he wanted to know.

Jewel was the only stray of light on this godforsaken evening and he couldn't wait to get away from his mother.

But the face his mother made sent his alarm bell ringing. "Well, Logan, I fear there's been kind of a misunderstanding. I totally mixed up the dates. She's only coming next weekend, you see."

Logan grew very still. "Jewel's not coming? She's not here tonight?" he asked incredulously.

All this trouble and pain – for nothing? He had to ditch Rory and then not even have Jewel as a companion to keep him sane during this night?

"No, I fear not, at least not before next weekend," his mother said, not sounding sorry at all. "But don't worry, Logan. I made sure that you'll still have a nice date for tonight."

"Oh, have you?" Logan sarcastically said, his voice chilling.

He bet she had. Slowly, this whole farce started to make sense.

"Yes. Really a lovely girl. Perhaps you even know her: Viviane Fallon?" his mother asked, smiling.

Logan frowned. "Fallon? As in Nicholas Fallon? The owner of CBN?" he asked suspiciously.

Sure enough, his mother nodded. "Viviane's his daughter. I'm sure you'll enjoy your time with her. She's such a charming, sweet girl. Not to mention that she comes from a truly good family. And the best, they're even also in the news business. Don't you think that's really nice?"

Nice? _Nice?!_ Convenient for them perhaps, but nice? Logan knew that his father was trying to get a better, deeper contact with the television news channels. Oh, yeah, everything was making sense to him now. His father's insistence to attend this party. The call from his mother, forbidding him to bring his own date by lying to him about Jewel. Just to set him up with that girl who happened to be the daughter of one of the most important men in the television news industry. Because a connection between them would surely also make a wonderful connection between the Huntzberger company and the CBN networks.

And for this he had hurt Rory.

"I hope you're joking, Mom, because if not I'll…" Logan started in a hiss, barely able to keep his anger down anymore.

Of course, she didn't listen. His mother never listened. "Oh, there she is! Viviane, darling, come here," she called out and before Logan had a chance to further protest, a girl his age was coming towards them, smiling.

"Shira. Wonderful party," she complimented as her eyes glanced at Logan.

"Thank you, dear. Now, where are my manners," his mother smiled, shaking her head. "Viviane, this is our son Logan. He'll take over the business once he has finished Yale. Logan, this is Viviane Fallon. You're at Berkeley, aren't you?"

"Yes Ma'am, I am," Viviane answered, but kept her eyes on Logan. "Nice to meet you, Logan. I've heard quite a lot about you."

Sure she had. Including the amount of stocks he owned and she probably knew his blood type as well. "Viviane," he said curtly and nodded once.

His lack of cooperation earned him an elbow into his side from his mother. "Now, isn't this a wonderful coincidence? You see Viviane, Logan's dormitory on campus is called Berkeley. And you're at Berkeley! Yes, yes, such a nice coincidence," his mother quickly rushed in to say. "Oh, I see that the caterer needs my attention. Well, I'll leave you then. Have fun!" Not really waiting for an answer, his mother hurried away.

Furious, Logan glared after her before he slowly turned his eyes to the girl that his mother obviously wanted him to marry. She was good looking, but then, Logan hadn't expected anything else. Her blond hair was artfully pinned up, with a few strands of hair falling down. Decent make-up accentuated her blue eyes but they still were nothing compared to the sparkling brilliance of Rory's beautiful eyes. Her long golden dress suited her slim figure well and matched the tanned skin hours at the tanning salon had given her. But Logan never had been a fan of salon tan. It looked unnatural and he preferred porcelain white skin like Rory's anytime. And she was too tall for his liking. Not to mention too thin. He bet she was one of those annoying girls that only picked at their food instead of barreling into it like his Ace did. But without doubt she'd make a perfect trophy wife.

Not if he could help it.

"Viviane, right?" he asked, even though he remembered her name perfectly.

She nodded. "Yes. But most call me Vive."

Well, she would wait long before he would call her that. "You've already eaten?" he asked, nodding towards the buffet.

"Oh, yeah, I had some salad. Delicious," Viviane answered.

Of course she had salad. And of course that was enough for her. He doubted his Ace would have even touched the salad but would have just gone straight to the real food.

But his Ace wasn't here. Instead, he was held captive here with this Fallon girl.

He spotted his father, Seymour Hersh and a few other men coming back into the ballroom.

But not for much longer, he consoled himself. He looked back at Viviane. "So… what did you think about _My Lai 4_?" he asked, trying to find something else to casually talk about.

"About what?" Viviane asked with a frown. "Is that some Asian music group?"

Oh, this was getting better and better. Impatiently, Logan shook his head. "No. Seymour Hersh's book."

But she looked even more lost. "Who's Seymour Hersh?"

For a moment Logan stared at her, trying to see if she was really serious. She was. How could she be the daughter of Nicholas Fallon and not know who Seymour Hersh was? It was widely known that Fallon was trying for years now to get Hersh to work for him. Had his parents now completely lost their minds? Did they really think that he'd go for such a blond Paris Hilton look-a-like bimbo?

"Enjoying yourself?" Shira asked, showing up beside them again.

"Splendidly, Shira," Viviane was quick to say, smiling brightly.

Disgusted, Logan shook his head. "If the ladies would excuse me for a moment. I need to make a call," he apologized and excused himself.

"Logan, is this really necessarily?" His mother asked with a frown.

"Yes, I fear it is," he answered her coldly and left while he still could and before his mother left him stranded alone with that girl again.

He stepped out into the balcony and took a deep breath. Once he was sure he was able to talk without yelling, he pulled out his cell and pressed speed dial.

"How's the party? Already ready to bolt?" Colin asked knowingly.

"You have no idea," Logan muttered darkly. "How's Rory?"

"No idea, man. She left barely five minutes after you, mumbling that she was already late for her Friday night dinner," Colin answered, with slight hesitation though.

"But?" Logan probed, not really wanting to know what had made his friend hesitate, but still needing to know.

"It's just… I was seriously afraid that she would start to cry any second there," Colin unhappily told him.

Logan closed his eyes and let his head hang down. "Shit."

Colin was quiet for a few moments. "So, how's Jewel? You bringing her along for a visit once that damn party is over?"

"Could turn out to be difficult as she's not here," Logan said darkly.

"What? But I thought…"

"It seems as if Mom conveniently mixed up the dates. But no worry, she looked to it that I won't be alone tonight," Logan told him bitterly.

"Oh, no," Colin sighed.

"Oh, yes. Blond, tall, thin and seems to be best buddy with my mother," Logan said with a nod. "And she just happens to be the daughter of Nicholas Fallon."

"Ah…" Colin commented dryly. "How opportune."

"That it is," Logan agreed and sighed. "I wouldn't be surprised if there aren't some first drafts of the merger contracts lying around."

"I'm sorry, Logan."

"Yeah, me too," Logan answered tiredly. "Listen, I'm out of here as soon as I can. Why don't you and Finn meet me at the airport? I need to get away from here."

"Splendid idea. Where to?"

Logan shrugged. "Don't care as long as it's far, far away from here."

"Okay, I'll see what Finn thinks. Meet you in an hour?" Colin asked.

"Yeah, that should work. See you later. Thanks," he said and disconnected.

For a moment, he stared at the familiar skyline in front of him. He liked to be in New York. But not tonight. He doubted he'd found any peace tonight, no matter where he eventually would end at. It would still be better than to be here though. And if he wanted to be at the airport in an hour he better hurry.

With a sigh, he turned to head back inside. Staying clear of his mother and Viviane who were still chatting cheerfully with each other, Logan went over to his father.

"Dad," he greeted. "Gentlemen."

"Ah, Logan, there you are." His father nodded at him and then turned to Hersh and the other men. "I believe you remember my son?"

There was a general nod all around. "Of course. How's Yale?" one of the men asked.

"Fine, Sir," Logan nodded and then turned to Seymour Hersh, ignoring the rest. "I wondered if I could perhaps have a moment of your time, Mr. Hersh?"

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Logan was back in the limousine and on his way to the airport. Logan had left the party after his talk with Seymour Hersh. He hadn't been there for even an hour but he sure had had enough for one evening. And he had left without saying his goodbyes to anyone, certainly not his parents or his 'date'. He'd hear about it, no doubt, but he couldn't care less. Not after everything they had done to him that night.

Not after what they had done to Rory. They should be all censured for their bad behavior.

Besides, there's not much they could say. He had been there, had met that Fallon girl and he even had had a brief talk with the guest of honor. Rory had been right. Hersh was an interesting man.

Logan looked down to the book in his hands. One of the detours he had made before heading to New York had been a short trip home to go get his first edition of _My Lai 4: A Report of the Massacre and Its Aftermath_. Slowly, he opened it on the front page.

_To Ace_

_From an Ace_

_Seymour Hersh_

He stroked over the inscription. Hersh sure had been surprised at Logan's request for him to sign the book. He actually had asked Logan if his father had set him up to that. Logan had truthfully answered that no, his father had nothing to do with this and that this was simply for a friend who happened to be a huge fan of him – and unfortunately hadn't been able to make it to the party to meet him personally. So Hersh had signed it, chuckling when Logan had told him the inscription he wanted.

Sighing, Logan closed the book again and carefully put it into his bag. He hoped this would help him to get back on Rory's good side. That it would make up at least a little for the unfortunate way he had to ditch her tonight. This way, maybe, it would be enough to save his friendship with Rory – and would show her that he wasn't quite the jerk he was pretty sure Rory saw in him right now. Should he include himself with Francine Hayden and those people from high society who needed to be censured?

He just hoped that he hadn't lost any and every chance he had with Rory after all that.

* * *

TBC!

_(Author's Note: Sorry it took so long, but RL interfered with my writing time – and it wasn't the easiest chapter to write. They totally mixed up the time for example: That party is on Friday, at least that's how they mentioned it – but they totally threw that last Rogan scene into Thursday evening scenes… a mistake I ignored as you've seen. Oh, and as a short warning, this was the only episode I hadn't in original language, so I had no means to check the dialogue transcripts for their accuracy. I hope it was right for the biggest part. So… 61 pages to cover two short Rogan scenes – at least there was a lot of dialogue in it. I'm officially crazy. But at least I think everything's set up for the next few episodes now, especially of course Wedding Bell Blues. Anyone dares to make a prediction for that chapter? I for sure don't. Okay, I hope you're not yet bored. Once again thanks for the wonderful comments – and the desperate cries for more. I heard you and it spurred me on – so please, don't stop!)_


	8. Too much drama

**Chapter 8: Too Much Drama**

**(Wedding Bell Blues)**

"Hmm… now that's what I call _La Vida Dolce_," Colin sighed, sipping his champagne. "Everyone without money is to be pitied for not being able to live 'the sweet life' once in a while."

"But then who says _La Vida Dolce_ has to look like this?" Finn mused, sighing in contentment as well. "Perhaps for a poor worker, a day spent on a hammock is _La Vida Dolce_."

Colin snorted. "Not enough style."

"Who knows?" Finn shrugged and stretched himself. "But I gotta say it was quite a genius idea of mine to go to Mexico. Why didn't we go earlier? Why don't we go more often? I'd say we go once a month from now on."

"Because then you'd get bored in no time and we couldn't go to Mexico for years after that. Or do I have to remind you of Hawaii?" Colin told him while he served himself some caviar.

"Ah, Hawaii… what splendid times we've spent there… and how boring ones," Finn nodded with a sigh. "Okay, so not every month. But definitely more often from now on."

"Well, it had been nice to get out of the freezing Connecticut winter," Colin acknowledged. "And I did promise Sarida to come back soon."

Finn groaned. "No! Not another tirade about the beautiful Sarida, Colin! Or I'm gonna grab the parachute and jump. I've heard it. Logan has heard it. The whole world has heard it. The whole universe complete with every single alternative reality has heard it!"

Colin looked offended. "Well, she _is_ a dream of a woman. And just how many hours did we have to hear you ramble about your redheads, huh, Finn?"

"That's so not the same!" Finn protested and turned to Logan. "Hey, some help here, mate!"

With a sigh, Logan tore away his eyes from the clouds outside the small window of his jet to look over at his friends. "I've heard enough of both Sarida and the redheads," he stated and turned to gaze back out towards the clouds, hanging dark and heavy around them.

They looked just as he was feeling. Not even the hot sun and the rows of nice girls could help him shake off his bad mood. And not even the strongest tequila could make him forget last Friday's event. The hurt and disappointment in Rory's eyes and that brave smile she had put on despite everything had haunted him all weekend long. Actually, Rory never quite left his mind – or subconsciousness. The blue sky and the blue water would automatically conjure up an image of her blue eyes. The girls would flirt with him and he couldn't help but be bored, constantly comparing their boring, common ways to the witty but, oh so effective way his Ace flirted. He'd kiss some girl and just found himself disappointed even though he never had shared a kiss with Rory to compare it with. But, he just knew it wouldn't be so – unsatisfying with her. Hell, he was pretty sure that he had called the Mexican girl he eventually had landed in bed with Saturday night 'Ace' at least one time, even though the memory of that night was admittedly a bit hazy. Thankfully, the girl only understood Spanish. And it was a nickname after all, nothing specific. The girl could have had no idea that 'Ace' meant another girl. But it sure had been an effective reason for him to go to bed alone for the next two nights.

Never before had a wrong name slipped from his lips. It scared him that it had happened. It scared him that obviously Rory was occupying his thoughts so much already that he couldn't trust himself anymore.

If it was already that bad now – how much worse would it get once he and Rory had gone all the hundred yards and had had sex with each other finally? Would he cease to think about his Ace 24/7 after the sexual tension between them was gone? Or would it become even worse? Could it even get any worse?

Logan didn't think an increase of this total focus was possible – but then he never would have thought it possible that any girl could ever get to him as much as his Ace did.

And the longer he thought about it, the more unsure he became if he really wanted that. If he really wanted to risk going even further with her.

Because of that girl he got into fights with his best friends. They even warned him about her and he had no reasons but to believe that they were dead serious about their warnings. He was loosing interest in other girls and now had even started to call them 'Ace' by accident. He was ready to get into yet another disagreement with his parents over her. He had made himself look like an idiot because of her, several times. He was going out to look at motorcycles because of her. Not to mention that his standard shower lately included freezing cold water. Hell, even the bartender of his favorite bar started to make comments about him settling down with Rory.

Him, Logan Huntzberger, settling down!

Ha! As if that was ever going to happen!

At least not on his free will. And even if he was forced into it – his father sure never had settled down. He changed his 'girlfriends' more often than Logan did.

But then, his father had never loved his wife.

Shaking his head at that thought, Logan frowned. Where had that come from?

"Okay Logan, you better spill whatever goes on in that head of yours since Friday," Finn sighed, turning to face Logan.

Confused, Logan looked at him. "What?"

"You're brooding on something. And I don't think that brooding is good for you. It seldom is. So you better tell us what goes on in that twisted head of yours so we can tell you just how wrong you are in your thoughts," Finn stated, looking darkly at him.

"And what makes you think it's wrong?" Logan asked aggressively.

"Because whenever you think too much and too hard it has bad results," Colin said. "Or do I have to remind you of Groton?"

"I got out, didn't I?" Logan said defensively. "That's what I wanted and that's what I achieved."

Colin shook his head. "Yeah, and just how much convincing did it take again for Mitchum to not send you to military school but to Andover?"

Logan shrugged. "Old business."

"Seriously, Logan – what's going on with you, man?" Colin asked quietly, his eyes boring into Logan.

Logan looked away. He couldn't name it. And that was just one of his problems. But he for sure wasn't ready to talk about it. He knew Finn and Colin only wanted to help him – but he doubted that this was something they could help him with. Not this time. So he shook his head. "I don't know. And I don't want to talk about it."

Colin and Finn were silent for a moment. Probably exchanging yet another look. Logan didn't bother to check on it.

"All right, mate," Finn finally said. "You know we're here when you change your mind. Just don't wait too long, Logan."

Logan nodded, but said nothing. Silence stretched out between the friends that was thankfully soon broken by the pilot's announcement that they were ready to land.

Sighing, Logan fastened his seat belt.

Time to face the music.

* * *

He had thought though that he would have a little bit more time before the music played up with a fanfare. No such luck. When the boys got onto their floor a little surprise awaited them at Finn's and Colin's door. Logan slowed, unsure what to do.

"Love! You got lost? Well, fear not! We're here to rescue you now," Finn exclaimed with delight. "To what lucky circumstance do we owe the fact that you're welcoming us here, right on our doorstep? I'm Finn by the way. And you are, my exquisite love?"

"The same as last time, Finn," came the deadpanned answer. "Where were you? I tried to hunt you down for two days now."

"Just a little trip to Mexico. It's bloody too cold here," Finn answered, stepping forward to unlock their door. "I was in desperate need for some sun and tequila, otherwise, I couldn't have faced one more single winter day in Connecticut."

Unbelieving eyes looked from one to the other. "You were in Mexico? Just like that?"

"Sure," Finn answered simply and opened the door, pushing his bag inside.

Colin followed him in. "Why don't you come in?" he said to their visitor. "I take it you have a reason for hunting us down for two days now?" He turned his head to Logan who still stood rooted to the same spot. "That reminds me, you still have my camera, Logan."

"And my tequila!" Finn shouted from inside the apartment. "You won't leave without giving me my tequila!"

Logan wasn't stupid. He knew exactly what his friends tried to do. Didn't mean though that this was a good idea. He for sure was more than just a bit hesitant. First testing the waters was perhaps the best he could do here. Right. He forced himself to take a step forward. "Ace," he greeted her quietly.

"Logan," she answered stiffly, barely glancing at him.

At the ice in her voice, Logan cringed. It looked as if her disappointment from Friday had turned right into anger. She was probably calling him a butt-faced miscreant again in her mind. Well, he guessed he couldn't blame her. Inwardly sighing, he looked at Colin, who hinted a clueless shrug at him.

"So… why are you here, Rory?" Colin asked, addressing Rory again.

She brightened again when she looked at him. "I was looking for you actually."

"Me?" Colin asked surprised.

Logan, too, frowned slightly. Why would she come looking for Colin? Especially when she was obviously so angry with Logan and knew exactly that it was more than likely that he would be with Colin when she found him?

Rory nodded eagerly. "Yeah, I need your help."

Colin's help?

"My help?" Colin echoed his thoughts and shook his head. "Come on in, please."

Rory hesitated for a moment but eventually entered. Even more hesitantly, Logan followed her in. Perhaps not the best idea – but he wanted to know what kind of help Rory wanted from Colin.

"Okay, what do you need?" Colin asked, closing the door behind them.

Rory, who had looked curiously around the suite, now turned back to face Colin. "You've got British roots, don't you?"

Colin frowned but nodded.

"Well, see, Grandpa made me his best men. And while that's great – I have no idea what I'm supposed to do now!" She said – or rather said, rambled. "And it doesn't help that it's not a real wedding, only a renewal of their vows. I mean, all I have to research on are books and movies. But they're no big help. I hardly can organize him a stripper party. And I highly doubt that he'll want me in his dressing room before the ceremony to calm down his nerves. Am I really supposed to write him a speech? A bride gets bridal gifts. Do you men do that as well? If yes, what? I couldn't find anything on that matter. I mean, I'd like to get him something, something fitting, something that differs from my usual gifts to him, but what? And as he has British roots, as well, I thought it would be nice if I could include something British as well. But is there even a special British tradition? I thought that perhaps you know something about that. Oh, and do you happen to know any close friends of his? I realized I have no idea who his friends are! Is that believable? I should organize a bachelor party for him, shouldn't I? But how? I mean, I can hardly participate, can't I? So I thought I call a friend of his and let him take care of that. Only, I have no idea who!"

The three boys stared at her for a minute.

"Uh… what?" Finn finally asked, frowning big.

Colin scratched his head, frowning, obviously already thinking about all of Rory's questions.

Logan frowned too. "Vow renewal? Does that mean that Richard and Emily are back together?"

Rory glanced at him and nodded, her eyes shining happily for a moment. "Yeah. They got back together last Thursday." The happiness in her eyes gave way to a guarded expression. "They told us at last Friday's dinner."

Cringing, Logan looked down, briefly, before he met her eyes again. "That's great. I'm glad for them. And for you," he said quietly. He really was. He knew this meant a lot to her. And hey, perhaps this would help her forgive him for ditching her.

Her eyes lingered on him for a moment before she blushed a little. "Yeah, well, I'm really happy for them." She looked away, back to Colin. "So, can you help me? I really don't know who else to ask. I don't have that many male friends. And none from society but you three."

At least she still included him as her friend. That was something, wasn't it?

"Sure," Colin nodded slowly. "But you know, I don't think we know much more than you. Certainly not about vow renewals."

She shrugged. "That's okay. If you can just give me some pointers, something to work with and I'll be forever grateful."

"'cuse me, but what's wrong with your grandfather that he makes you the best man?" Finn chirped in, still frowning. "I mean, no offense, love, but you're a girl." He shook his head. "No girl can be a best man."

"Well, I think it's cute," Rory defended her grandfather's decision.

Finn shook his head and Logan had to smile, the first real smile in days. He had to admit that he found the idea sweet as well. True, it was a bit weird. But sweet. And definitely not something he was likely to see happening in his own family. "When is the ceremony?" he asked curiously.

Again, Rory glanced at him. "Saturday," she answered.

"That's damn fast," Colin said. "Why the rush?"

Finn though shook his head sadly. "Saturday for no luck at all," he muttered darkly. "Bad, bad, bad…"

"Finn, what on Earth are you talking about?" Colin asked frowning, turning to the Australian.

When Finn saw the frown on all their faces he shook his head. "Really, don't you know anything? _Monday for health, Tuesday for wealth, Wednesday best of all, Thursday for losses, Friday for crosses, Saturday for no luck at all._ So you see, Saturday is a very lousy choice."

"Finn – most weddings are on a Saturday," Colin pointed out.

"Yeah. And the divorce rate's rising with every wedding on a Saturday. Or why do you think we have so many divorces, hmm?" Finn pointed out back, flopping down. "I can guarantee you, you'll never see me marrying on a Saturday. Me, I'm going to marry on a Wednesday."

"You already set a date as well?" Logan asked sarcastically.

Before Finn could answer, Rory interrupted them. "Well, the day really doesn't matter here. Saturday's their fortieth wedding anniversary that's all they were concerned about. That's why it's so short notice."

"Well, then I guess the anniversary charm will beat the bad luck day," Finn mentioned thoughtful.

"Good to hear," Rory responded dryly. "Now, could we turn to the problem at hand?"

"Thankfully, the best man doesn't have to do much, not nowadays. Just organize the bachelor party, make sure the groom gets safe to the church the next day and that the rings are there," Finn lectured. "And nope, no presents. We just give the poor man money to symbolize the fact that even despite that he now puts himself under his wife's reign, we're still buddies. And to ensure that he still has money to come drink with us as the wife now gets control of the finances," he said with a meaningful look towards Rory, then sighed. "But, of course, that really won't work well for you."

Rory just rolled her eyes.

"And as for special British tradition – sorry, can't think of one. Well, apart from the mascot," Colin took over from Finn.

"Mascot?" Rory asked, clearly perking up.

Colin nodded. "Last year, when I visited some aunt in Oxford, a friend of mine took me along to a wedding. He was the best man. He told me they use to give the groom a mascot or some lucky charm to carry for the wedding, for good luck."

"Hey, that's great! Thanks!" Rory nodded, beaming.

"And as for friends… try Thomas Welston. I'm not definitely sure, but from what I heard he and your Grandpa are very good friends that go a long way back. Yale if I'm not mistaken," Logan suggested. Actually, he knew damn well that Thomas and Richard went together to Yale – and were and still are members of the LDB. But that was something Rory had to find out on her own. "I can get you the number if you want," he offered.

This time there was no hesitation or awkward glance into his direction when she simply nodded her thanks to him. "Thank you, Logan." She looked at all three of them and smiled. "Really, thanks for the help, boys."

"Aww love… you know us," Finn smiled back at her. "We'd do anything for a beautiful lady. Even more so when she also happens to be a friend. And we'd lay the world at your feet if you have sex with us."

Logan and Colin sent him a glare which Finn answered with an innocent shrug and flashed Rory a leery grin.

Rory blushed. "Uh… yeah, well, I've got to go. I guess I'll see you around," she said, a bit flustered, and turned to go. "And again, thank you!" she called over her shoulder and was out of the door before any of the boys could stop her.

Logan looked at the closed door, debating with himself for a moment and then made a quick decision. He wanted her back on good terms with him. At least that. He picked up his bag again. "I'll see you at the pub tonight," he told Finn and Colin and left as well, hurrying after Rory who he could just see vanish behind a corner.

"Hey, Ace, wait up a moment!" he called out to her.

When she stopped and turned he could see that she didn't seem too happy about the wait-up. Perhaps this wasn't the best moment after all to give her the book. But as she had seemed to warm up the ice between them a little, Logan also figured that he'd better use it. He may be unsure about this whole situation – but he definitely didn't want her angry with him.

"Look, Logan, I'm really grateful for your help but…"

"I'm sorry about Friday," Logan interrupted her and she shut up immediately to give him a deep frown. He bit his lips. Okay, that had more burst out of him than anything else. He sure hadn't planned to start like that – or say that at all for that matter. "I… Look, I know that I more or less… but then… yeah well… just… I want you to know that I _really_… but then… I just couldn't… and now… I… I'm sorry, okay?" he finally finished miserably.

God – what had _that_ been? Rory would have to be a medium to have understood anything of this stuttered nonsense. And where the hell had all his words gone to? He had practiced his apology over the weekend. Had thought about what to say – and don't say. And now he had hardly been able to put two words together!

Arrrgh!

Rory was still frowning at him but while he squirmed over his words, or better said, lack of words, her frown disappeared and she nodded slowly. "Okay."

"I know you're probably still angry and really, I… what?" Logan stared at her. Did she just say 'okay'?

Indeed, she once again nodded – and shrugged even. "It's okay. Something got in-between. That happens." Her eyes narrowed a little. "But you know, you could just have told me that."

Just like that? She forgave him just like that? The last time he had to crawl on his hands and knees to beg forgiveness from her, nearly had a heart attack because of her prank - and now she simply shrugged and it was okay?

"Uh… okay… I… I'll remember that in the future…" he said slowly, still stunned.

"You do that. If that's all, I really have to go now," she said and pointed towards the exit.

"Sure, that's all…" he started to say but then remembered the book. "No, wait!" He crouched down to frankly search for the book in his bag. Where… ah there. He took it and stood up again, holding the book out to her. "Here."

Rory looked at the book in his hands, then into his eyes, then back to the book again. Slowly, she took it. "_My Lai 4: A Report on the Massacre and Its Aftermath_?" she asked. "Logan that's nice, but I already…"

"Open it," he told her impatiently.

Raising an eyebrow, she did as she was told. Logan could tell the exact second when her eyes fell upon Hersh's inscription for her by the way her eyes widened and she first paled a little to then have that cute rosy blush coming back to her cheeks. She opened her lips to tonelessly whisper the dedication and he smiled. Oh, yeah, she liked the book. She liked the inscription.

_To Ace_

_From an Ace_

_Seymour Hersh_

She liked it a lot. Finally, she let the arm with the book sink down and she looked back at him, her eyes two beautiful, big blue stars.

"Logan… You didn't have…" Her voice trailed off.

"I'm sorry I couldn't take you along to meet him," he said quietly. "So I thought I'd bring you at least this. And just so you know: Hersh chuckled at the inscription."

She looked down at the book again, her fingers stroking over the dedication, before she turned to the next page. She shook her head and sighed. "But a first edition Logan… really, that's too much. I can't…"

Logan quickly stepped forward to put a finger on her lips. Electricity shot through the finger, up his arm and straight to the deepest core of his body. She stopped speaking and blushed some more. "Shhh… remember the rule, Ace," he told her softly. "Besides, the book was already mine, so it didn't cost a penny."

Slowly, she looked up at him again and nodded once. Then she surprised him by quickly throwing her arms around him and giving him a kiss on his cheek. "Thanks, Logan," she whispered into his ear.

Dumbfounded, he stood rooted to where he was standing while she cradled the book to her chest and quickly hurried away from him. He stared after her and slowly brought his hand up to touch the cheek where she had kissed him.

A big, goofy grin spread over his face.

* * *

The next day Logan actually went to his classes. Exams were in a few weeks and it usually was helpful to go to the classes ahead of exams. To let himself be seen and most of all to get an idea what stuff would come at the exams. And he may not be eager to get his years here in Yale over – but he actually was ambitious enough to pass the exams. If he had remembered though that this day the Yale Daily News edition with his article on the front page would come out, he probably would have optioned to wait another day to return to his classes.

By the time classes were over, Logan had heard enough comments about the article to last him for a while. Those who knew him inquired what mean virus had brought him down this time for him to write that article. Those who had waited for an opportunity to make contact with him used the article to finally approach him and congratulate him, some making even a few comments. Those were mostly girls and though Logan usually wouldn't mind their attention – he didn't like them using his article. And then there were the assholes like Robert who derided him about it, about how Daddy forced him to write something or what he had done this time that he had even went to the trouble of calming down his father by writing and publishing something.

In short, he was sick of the comments and once again his mood definitely could be better. If there had been at least one constructive, honest review among all the comments – but no, no one bothered to give him that. The most honest critique he'd get would probably be from his father and grandfather, once they read the article. But even that would be biased because Mitchum Huntzberger would only tell his son what he'd think he had to tell him in order to get what he wanted.

God, what a circus. And only one more reason just why Logan allowed himself so seldom to write and contribute an article.

It just wasn't worth the trouble, he thought darkly as he ordered himself a big cup of black coffee. He was just reaching for his wallet to pay the coffee guy when a bill appeared.

"That's on me, Richie. And give me one with cream, will you?"

Logan turned with a frown. "That's really not necessary, Ace," he told her, rather shortly. Sure, part of him was pleased to see her treating him to yet another cup of coffee – but he feared that she'd expect him to stay and talk with her. And though he'd love to talk with her any other time – he wasn't in the mood today. Especially as she probably would want to talk about the damn article as well.

Rory shrugged. "No, it's not. But guess what? I want to. Not to mention that I owe you at least two dozens more coffees to get even with you."

Logan took his coffee and shook his head. "You don't owe me anything, Ace." He took a long gulp and sighed.

She raised an eyebrow at him, but said nothing, just took her own coffee along with her change.

The coffee helped to calm him down a bit. But left him unsure about how to proceed now. Could he simply thank her and walk away? Well, he could at least try it. He raised the cup. "So… thanks for the coffee, Ace." She stared at him and Logan felt as if she saw a lot more than she should. Nervously, he looked away. "But you know, I really should…"

"You know, Doyle was right," Rory interrupted him softly, never taking her eyes off of him.

Startled by her words, Logan looked back to her. "What?" he asked.

"Doyle. He said you're an excellent writer," Rory clarified. "In fact, he said you have more talent in your little pinky finger than most of us have in our entire lives. And he's right."

Logan frowned. "He said that?" he asked doubtfully. Why would Doyle say such a thing to Rory if Logan wasn't around to hear it? Logan would expect him to say something like that to him. But to Rory? Why? Unless…

"Yeah." Rory nodded and tilted her head. "And why are you so surprised by that? There's no way you don't know yourself that you're a damn good writer."

He met her eyes. "Do I?" he asked sarcastically.

She was silent for a moment, before she slowly nodded. "Yeah, that's what I thought. But it seems I'm wrong." She shook her head. "Well, in case you're wondering: your article is one of the bests I've ever read. One that should stand in the _Times_, not in some unimportant college paper. You managed to stay objective, but still the general tone was in favor of Professor Warrick. The several statements in your article came over as their own, uninfluenced by your own opinion and I know how damn hard it is to achieve that. You presented the several opinions of the people involved un-biased, not judging one, giving each and everyone the opportunity to make his own opinion on that matter. It didn't get over-emotional or over fanatic, but stayed on a reasonable level that underlined the message even more. I think you could have used some more statistical numbers to support the point, but then, that's what I've had done. It still worked well without. In short, a fantastic article, one that leaves me pretty jealous as I know how little time you actually had to invest in that article. I would have put in at least thrice the time and I'm still not sure I'd have managed to write something similarly good as yours."

For a long time, Logan could just stare at her. He believed her. He really believed her. Ace had just given him what so far no one had managed to give him: a review of one of his articles he could actually trust.

"But you know, it also left me wondering," Rory continued, her eyes still locked with his. "How come that someone who loves to write - and don't even deny it, no one who can write like that cannot but love writing - and has such a talent, has also the nickname Mr. Invisible in the news staff? The common belief is that you only write when you're bored or sick and have nothing better to do. Why do you deny yourself this? Why is an article of yours not on every front page of our paper?"

Uncomfortable under her scrutinizing eyes, Logan shifted on his feet. But he didn't break their eye contact. And in the spur of the moment, he decided to go with the simple truth for once. "I received many comments about that article today. But how many of them can I trust to be honest, what do you think? I tell you how many: One. Only one and I just only received it." He paused to let his words sink in for a moment, before he continued. "If you can choose, for which paper you'd want to write, Ace?" he asked.

She frowned, but answered without hesitation. "The_ New York Times _of course."

Logan nodded. "Exactly. Because every reporter dreams of working for the_ Times_. Or perhaps for the _Herald Tribune_. How big do you think are the chances for the board of the _New York Times_ to hire the Huntzberger heir?" He shook his head. "I can't dream, Ace. How'd you feel if you can't even dream about your future?" Finally, he tore his eyes away from her. "I need to go," he said quietly and then quickly left.

Damn it. Why had he told her all that? She didn't need to know that. Way too much information. He didn't want her to feel pity for him. And he for sure didn't want to think that he was an ungrateful brat. It wasn't that he didn't know that the Huntzberger Company had big things to offer him as well. He knew that. He just didn't want it. At least not like that. Handed to him without having to fight for it. Forced into the business without having any choice about it. Oh, yeah, he had definitely talked too much. But then… even when she had no idea how it really damned felt to be the Huntzberger heir, he felt as if she was one of the few people who could really understand him and his reluctance to write. Hadn't she just given him his first real review? And a damn good one it had been as well. She had liked the article. Suddenly, with her few words, his bitterness that writing something for the paper always brought along disappeared and left him simply reeling in the knowledge that his work had paid off and he had written something good. Something Rory had actually liked a lot.

And that thought alone brought a smile to his face and gave him a feeling he very, very seldom felt – at least in relation to his writing.

Pride.

* * *

"Well, I'm glad to see that your spirits lifted considerably since the last time I've seen you," first thing Finn said as Logan entered his friend's suite that evening.

Logan frowned. "And how can you know that? I've only just entered."

"Please," Finn said, rolling his eyes as he gave himself a last once over in the mirror, nodding contently.

"It's hard to miss. That black cloud over your head that followed you ever since last Friday disappeared and obviously left only blue, sunny sky," Colin said dryly, coming out of his room. "Thank God. The cloud already had started to go away last night after Rory forgave you, but boy, was it back full force as soon as you saw your article in the paper." Colin put on his jacket and shook his head. "Not that I understand that. I mean, what do you want? The article's good. Actually, it's damn good, probably the best you've ever written if you ask me. And it sure will get Mitchum off of your back for a while."

"Yeah, it's really terrible to get a good article published," Finn mentioned as well. "So, when did you meet Reporter Girl on this fine day?"

"And why would you think I met her at all?" Logan asked, still frowning.

"What else could have lifted your spirits like that? Or rather said, who?" Finn grinned. "So… when?"

"And where?" Colin nodded knowingly as well. "Ha, I know, I bet she told you just how good she found your article. That sure would explain that stupid grin on your face."

What stupid grin? Logan wasn't aware that he had been smiling at all. Exasperated, he shook his head. "Come on, let's go. I don't want to be late."

"Late? For the pub?" Finn asked, raising his eyebrow.

Ignoring him, Logan turned and headed outside.

This was ridiculous. And it was clearly getting out of hand if Finn and Colin thought the only reason for him to have cheered up could only mean that he had met Rory. Since when did he need Rory to cheer up again? That wasn't true. Sure, it actually had been Rory's words that had lifted his mood today but given time, something else would have done the deal as well. He couldn't think of something right now, but he was sure that there would have been something else.

Right.

"You know, last time I checked we weren't participating in the marathon contest," Colin called from behind him. "Will you slow down for Heaven's sake?"

Sighing, Logan stopped to wait for his friends. He just hoped they wouldn't start with Rory again.

"So, everything's set for our poker game Sunday?" Colin though asked.

Relieved about the change of topic, Logan nodded. "I think so. Table and card dealer are booked and will arrive at six to set everything up. The caterer shows up then as well to prepare the buffet."

Finn frowned. "Poker game? What poker game?"

"The one we've been talking about since at least two weeks?" Colin asked sarcastically.

"You have? Never heard a word about it. Why am I not invited?" Finn asked, feigning hurt.

"You hate poker, remember? Not to mention that you always loose," Colin reminded him.

Finn shrugged. "Will there be girls?"

Logan and Colin nodded.

"Will there be booze?"

Again, Logan and Colin nodded.

"Have I or have I not more money than I can probably spend in my entire lifetime?"

Now grinning, Logan and Colin nodded.

Finn made a 'so there' gesture.

Logan slapped him on the back. "All true, Finn. But you said yourself you're not interested in this one. Robert's going to be there," he elaborated before Finn could ask why.

Immediately, Finn's face crunched up in disgust. "Aww man, why would you go ruin a perfect nice party like that?"

"Because I want my nine grand back," Logan told him.

"And because Robert's my friend," Colin sighed and shook his head. "And tough luck, Huntzberger. No offense, but you suck at poker."

Logan shrugged. "The luck can always change. Perhaps I'll find a lucky charm this time and I'll show Robert once and for all who's the poker ace."

Finn grinned. "Okay, when you get Reporter Girl to come to play your lucky charm I'm going to come as well, despite Robert being there. 'Cause that I want to see with my own eyes."

And here they were at Rory again. Why would Finn even think he'd ask Rory to come? It was ridiculous. A poker game was hardly Rory's type of thing. And what made Finn think she'd be Logan's lucky charm?

God, this fixation of his on him and Rory really needed to stop!

"I'm not going to ask Rory to come," he told Finn straight out.

Sadly, Finn shook his head. "Well, in that case, count me out."

Logan just shook his head and entered the pub.

* * *

Three hours later, Logan found himself sitting alone in a booth, unluckily still way too sober. He wanted to be drunk. Perhaps then his mind would finally stop going back and forth, back and forth. And yet he couldn't bring himself to pour down the alcohol en mass.

Finn and Colin were chatting up with girls. But Logan wasn't in the mood to chat up with girls. He didn't know exactly what he'd like to do… but he had a pretty clear picture what he didn't want to do.

He sighed. Truth was that it would probably be best if he simply went back to his dorm, worked on some papers and then go to bed. Staying here alone didn't make much sense. And there was absolutely no need for him to drag Finn and Colin down with him. Not that they showed any signs of a similar strange mood as Logan was in.

Yeah, that was probably the best to do.

Logan was just about to slip out of the booth when he saw two guys dragging a staggering Marty towards him. Great. He really wasn't keen on meeting Rory's friend right now. So instead of slipping out, Logan slid even deeper into the booth to wait until his way was once more clear for him. Marty's friends pushed Marty into the booth behind Logan.

"Jeez Marty… what the hell got into you? You normally don't drink that much," one of the guys said.

Marty mumbled something Logan couldn't understand. Not that he cared. He just wanted to get out of here. And feeling that now was as good a time as ever, he once again slid forward in his booth to finally leave.

"Stupid question, Dave. There's only one person that can get Marty so down," the other friend said with a sigh.

The first guy, Dave, sighed as well. "Of course. So… what did Rory do this time?"

Logan froze.

"Nothing," Marty mumbled, this time loud and clear enough for Logan to hear.

"And I guess that's the problem, huh?" the second guy said. "Marty, really, tell her finally! You're in love with that girl since you woke up in front of her door, butt-naked, may I add."

Marty groaned.

_What?_ What the hell had happened for Marty to be in front of Ace's door, naked? Logan thought, frowning.

"That's not helping, Tom!" Dave hissed. "But seriously, Marty. He's right. Nothing will ever happen unless you talk to her."

"Wouldn't matter anyway. She just has eyes for that arrogant, spoiled brat right now," Marty slurred darkly.

The frown on Logan's forehead deepened. Did Marty mean him?

One of the guys snorted. "So what? Huntzberger may have turned her head at the moment, but we all know that his interest won't stay on her for long," the other guy, Tom, said.

"I'm not so sure there. He's after her since the beginning of this year. That's unusually long for him. Hell, he even went to the trouble of claiming her in front of the whole school," Dave contradicted.

"So what? As soon as he gets what he wants he'll move on. Just wait and see. I know guys like him. She won't let him have it and it drives him crazy. But once she crumbles he'll lose interest and will move on to the next skirt to screw," Tom said unimpressed.

In the booth behind them, Logan felt his anger rise as his hands fisted. Who did that guy think he was? How _dare_ he?!

"Oh, shut up, Tom! Rory's not that type of girl! She's not one of those sex bunnies Huntzberger and his friends usually prefer!" Marty exclaimed, seething.

"Perhaps not," Dave said soothingly. "But Huntzberger's a pretty big charmer. Rumor has it that he's gone to some pretty extremes to worm his way into her bed. I know Rory's not an easy girl. But didn't you say yourself she's falling for him?"

Logan's heart stopped for a brief moment. Rory was falling for him?

"Yeah," Marty admitted, sounding miserably. "My own fault… should never have told her that that stupid prank meant that he liked her. That with it, he and his friends showed that they accepted her into their super exclusive circle."

Marty had what?! God, how stupid was this guy?

"But I foolishly thought it would help convince her just what an idiot he is. But no… of course not. All I did was probably get her even more intrigued by him. And then he goes buy her a ton of books. I'd buy her books as well if I could! And he's on the paper with her. That means that he can use every excuse to get close to her. Just has to say he needs help with an article, and he has her attention and time already. It's not fair!" Marty ranted. "I've heard her talking about him today. She's so obviously in love with him, it's disgusting. Now, he just has to ask her and she'll…"

Logan's heart was beating hard and fast against his chest, his eyes widening. Rory was in love with him? _In love?_

"It's over," Marty mumbled, defeated.

"Now, don't be so negative. You may believe what you want, but they're not together yet," Dave consoled him.

"Even if they do get together, it will be over already before you even realize it. Once Huntzberger moved on you'll be there to pick up the pieces and hopefully, this time you don't wait long enough for another guy to move in before you. She sees just how a reliable and caring guy you are, especially after a roamer like Huntzberger, and she's yours." Tom gave his piece of mind.

Again, Logan's hands fisted to tight balls. Oh, if he ever got face to face with this Tom guy…

"I'm not so sure about that, Tom," Marty murmured, barely audible for Logan. "Huntzberger may be an ass, but he's not stupid. Even he has to realize that Rory's different from the girls he usually goes out with. Look at the way he's already acting differently with her than with any of his girls. Rumor has it he doesn't go out as often anymore with other girls as before. He's changing his ways for her. And once…" he paused. "I don't think even he is dumb enough to let her go and not hold on to her. I can't imagine he can. Not Rory."

"Even if that's true, Rory won't play along, Marty. I can't imagine that. She's not that kind of a girl. She won't be one of the many," Dave said quickly. "And no matter what you believe, Huntzberger will never settle down with just one girl. He won't get himself caught in a relationship. Hell, I don't think a guy like him can do relationships."

Angry, but also confused, Logan stared onto the table in front of him, biting his lips. Relationship?

"You underestimate Rory," Marty sighed. "If one can bring down a Casanova like Huntzberger, then it's Rory. I've seen how he looks at her. I know that look. He may not have realized it himself yet, but he's serious about her. And I'll never have a chance against _him_."

Serious? _Serious?_ And what did Marty mean, he's seen how Logan looks at Rory? How did he look at Rory?

"Marty…"

"It's so typical. It isn't enough that he has the right name, the right breeding, the good looks and all that money. He'll never have to worry about his future. He can have every girl he wants. No, it's not enough. Now he even wants the only girl _I _want. It's not fair, damn it." Marty said angrily with a hint of depression. "If he's at least good enough for her… But he isn't. She's too good for someone like him. Sooner or later, that bastard will hurt her. But until then it will be too late for me. I lost her to him. To _him_! God, how I hate that asshole."

"Logan."

Colin's quiet voice made Logan jump a little. Confused, he looked up, to see Colin standing in front of the booth, staring at him concerned. Logan only needed to take one look at the anger on his friend's face and he knew that he wasn't the only one who had overheard at least part of the conversation between Marty and his friends. Quickly he looked away, shaking his head. After a moment, Logan grabbed his jacket.

He needed to get out of here. In fact, he should have left a while ago.

Without a word, Logan went past Colin, straight to the door, and out of there. Hoping that the cold air would help clear his head, he breathed in deeply while he directed his steps toward his dorm.

"Logan!" Colin called after him. "Logan, wait, damn it!"

Logan just went on. He didn't want to face Colin right now. He didn't want to face anyone, not even himself. The things he had heard… It didn't bother him that Marty and his friends obviously disliked him. He came from a way more privileged background than they. He was richer, better looking and more successful. So he was used to guys like them not liking him. Oh, he wouldn't mind to get a chance to have it out with that idiot Tom and Marty – but he was still indifferent about their insults.

What bothered him was their opinion about him and Rory. They seemed to interpret things which Logan didn't even dream about. Had he been really so different around her, about her, that even losers like those three started to think that Rory was more to him than any other girl?

But then, weren't they right about it? Never had any girl had such an impact on him. Never had any other girl managed to occupy his mind like his Ace had. Never had he found himself to be compelled to think about a girl as his anything. To nickname her in the first place for that matter. Never had he gone to such length to try and stay on a girl's good side like he had with Rory.

She _was_ different. _He_ was different with her.

But…

Falling for him. Relationship. Serious about her.

And hadn't Rick hinted something similar only last Friday? That he was settling down with Rory? Hadn't he nearly gotten into yet another fight with his best friends only hours before because they insisted on Rory being so involved in his life that she would be the only one able to cheer him up like she actually did?

_No, no, no!_

She may be different. But not _that _different!

He wasn't falling for her. He wasn't serious about her. He sure as hell wasn't settling down with her. And fuck, there was no way that he'd start a relationship with her.

He wasn't that kind of a guy!

Logan Huntzberger didn't do relationships. Logan Huntzberger wasn't a boyfriend.

And Rory… God, could it be really true? Was Rory really falling so hard for him like Marty had let it sound? Was she really _in love_ with him already?

A hand grabbed his arm, making him stop and turn to face Colin. "Logan, for Heaven's sake!"

"Let go, Colin," Logan told him with a frown, his thoughts still way too preoccupied with the things he had just heard.

But Colin held on. "Logan, please… don't even think about being bothered by what those idiots said."

Logan shook his head and tried to free his hand. Over Colin's shoulders he could see Finn quickly approaching them, a frown on his face. Great. Just what he needed on top of everything.

"Okay, can someone tell me what's going on? First, Logan storms out as if he's seen a ghost. Then you dash after him like you're the devil. And now I'm here instead of convincing that cute redhead that I'm the man of her dreams and she wants to spend the night with me and I damn well want to know why I'm here and not back there with her?" Finn asked, his tone light.

"Just go back to her," Logan told him and once again tried to free his arm.

No such luck. Damn, Colin really had a mean hold.

"He overheard Rory's bartender and some other losers bitch about him," Colin told Finn. "And now he's freaking out."

"I'm not freaking out!" Logan protested heatedly.

"Why for God's sake? We're privileged, they're not. It's bound for them to be jealous of us. Never bothered you before. Why now?" Finn asked Logan, raising an eyebrow. "Not to mention that you have the girl he's in love with. Won't help the matter either."

There it was again! Angrily, Logan tried a third time to free himself, and this time, he finally escaped Colin's grasp. Quickly, he backed away from his friends, not trusting them, not trusting himself, not trusting anything anymore.

"That's the point! Apparently, the whole world is convinced that Ace and I are in some sort of a relationship, or heading there. We're _not_!" Logan emphasized.

"Not yet," Colin clarified nonchalantly.

Logan stared at him and shook his head. "Not ever."

Colin sighed. "Logan…"

"No! You should know me better than anyone else. I'm not boyfriend material!" Logan made clear once and for all. "Yet even you two are trying to force me into some relationship I don't want."

Finn frowned. "Now wait a minute, mate. We don't force you into anything. We just try to make sure you don't fuck it up."

"And why? Because out of some irrational reason you want me to get into some committed thing with Ace. Why so adamant about that? You fearing the competition?" Logan hissed.

"Don't be ridiculous, Logan!" Colin protested. "You wouldn't do anything you don't want to do. Not unless at least your very existence is threatened. _You_ picked out Rory and _you_ were the one who decided that you want her. We just went along with that and you know that."

"I never said I want to be her boyfriend though!" Logan pointed out, still angry. "I can't do that, you know that!"

"Why not?" Finn asked.

"What?" Logan incredulously looked at him.

Finn shrugged. "Why not? You never tried to be a boyfriend. You never tried the relationship thing. None of us did. So how do you know that you're not boyfriend material? Why can't we be right when we, as your best friends, think that that girl is simply perfect for you?"

Logan had no real answer to that. Nothing that wasn't obvious in itself when looking at his life so far. So he just shook his head.

"It's not as if we got that idea out of nothing, Logan," Colin took over. "You're not the same with her, even you have to realize that. You hardly talk about anything else other than Rory anymore. Most of your life revolves around that girl right now. You go to lengths I didn't know you had in you in order to protect her, keep her safe and happy. Not to mention that you're possessive about her like you've never been about anyone or anything before."

"Or the way you look at her as if she's the most beautiful creature wandering these realms. That whenever you two are together, the tension and sparks between you are enough to keep this country running for days," Finn added. "Face it finally, Logan: You've fallen for that girl. And personally I don't see why this has your boxers in such a twist. Any guy would kill to find a girl like your Reporter Girl."

Logan stared at his friends and with a start, he realized just how bad the situation had already deteriorated. They really thought he was going to be with Rory, exclusively.

Yeah. He wanted Rory. He couldn't deny that. But just her? Already giving up the last freedom he had? Risk to get hurt like no one had ever been able to hurt him? No, he couldn't do that. He didn't want to do that. Not with Rory, not with anyone.

_She's not that kind of a girl. _

That's what that guy, Dave had said. And it was what Finn himself had said a few weeks ago. Logan never really had thought about it, but… they were right. His Ace wasn't that kind of a girl. She never could be. It was either her, exclusively, as his girlfriend – or it was what he had so far. There couldn't be any casual dating between them. Never.

Logan closed his eyes at the pain that shot through his heart with that realization.

There were two simple truths: One, he couldn't do the commitment thing. Two, Rory couldn't do the casual thing. Result: They simply couldn't be.

This meant that he needed to stop this, before it got even worse. God, he hoped Marty wasn't right. What he had to do would be hard enough, without Rory already halfway in love with him.

"No," Finn said vehemently. "Whatever you're thinking, no!"

"Come on, Logan. Don't let whatever that bartender guy said get to you. He's a loser. He's angry. He's jealous. You can't take anything he said seriously!" Colin tried to reason with him.

Logan looked at them. "He's right with one thing. She's not that kind of a girl. And I should have realized that earlier. Before…" He interrupted himself and shook his head. "Look, no offense, but I don't want to talk anymore about this. I need to think. And I need to be alone. I'll see you tomorrow."

Not waiting for his friend's reaction, he quickly turned and resumed his way over to his dorm. He was thankful that Colin and Finn didn't try to stop him again. He couldn't be with anyone right now. Hell, he could hardly be with himself right now.

There was no sleep for him that night. He went to bed, yeah, but all he did was toss around, trying to come to another solution for the problem at hand than his head had already figured out. In vain. There was only one thing he could do: break it off with Rory. Whatever _it_ was. It couldn't go on. It mustn't go on. He didn't want to hurt her. And if he didn't do something now, he would. Actually, it may already be too late for both of them to get out of this unhurt.

At the same time though he also knew that he couldn't let her out of his life completely. Not yet. He had come to cherish their chats together too much. The time they spent with each other. Admittedly not much, especially not just the two of them alone – still, he had come to appreciate that time and he wasn't giving that up.

But was it possible to just let the things be like they were now? For them to just being friends?

His gut said no. But he didn't care about that. He had to at least try it. Somehow to make it clear to her that they weren't ever going to date – but that he still wanted to be friends with her, spend time with her. If it didn't work… well, he'd face that dragon when it came up.

Now, if he could just get rid of that miserable feeling he had in his gut, everything would be fine. And get rid of that thing that felt like an iron hand slowly squishing his heart.

Fuck.

* * *

His phone rang. For a moment, Logan contemplated to not taking it. He had a pretty good hunch who it was. There were only a few who were dumb enough who would to try reach him at this time of day – and they all had the name Huntzberger. He sighed. So far he had ditched the parental calls, knowing what they would have to say more or less anyway. His mother would be furious that he left his 'date' high and dry at that stupid party and his father undoubtedly had one or two complaints about him leaving so early as well. And now, after the article was out, he'd have his review of it to pass down to his son. Unfortunately though, he also knew that he couldn't avoid them forever. And in the mood he was, he could as well deal with the family now. So he reached out and picked up the phone.

"Yeah?"

"Wow, I'm surprised. I hardly had to let it ring a dozen times," his mother's voice greeted him sarcastically.

"Hello, Mom," Logan sighed. He should have known it was her and not his father. "What do you want?"

"First of all, an apology would be appropriate, don't you think? I can't believe you really ditched that lovely Fallon girl like that. Have you any idea how much I had to apologize for your impossible behavior?" His mother said sharply. "It was bad enough you left so early, but without a word of good-bye? Really, Logan, I thought I taught you better manners than that. I just hope Nicholas Fallon will forgive us this terrible affront. You know how important it is for the family to have a good relationship with the Fallons."

"Well, then you perhaps shouldn't have tried to set me up with that girl. I told you very clearly that I won't play along with such schemes, Mother," Logan said heatedly. "Yet you ignored that and set me up. So sorry, but I don't think I owe anyone an apology. Neither to you nor to that girl. Besides, it looked like you two could perfectly enjoy yourself without me."

"Logan! How dare you…"

"Was there something else you wanted, Mother?" Logan interrupted her coldly. "If not, I have to prepare for my first class."

There was a slight pause in which Logan could hear her taking a deep breath. He bet there was a cigarette in her mouth right now. When she spoke again, her voice was icy. "It seems as if Richard and Emily reconciled. Now they have the foolish idea to renew their vows. This Saturday. Really, very impolite of them to make it such short notice. Anyway, we got an invitation and of course we have to go now."

Logan shook his head. Typical that his mother couldn't see the sweetness of this ceremony. What he hadn't figured out yet was why his mother was telling him this. He had already figured that his parents would probably attend the ceremony. They were friends with the Gilmores after all.

"Do you want to come directly or will you come home first?" That question brought him back from his thoughts.

"What?"

"You better don't think of refusing to come," his mother warned him. "They are our friends, they invited you formally and you will not insult another one of our friends, Logan."

Logan frowned. "They invited me as well?" he asked, surprised.

That was unusual. He hadn't expected that. Why would they invite him especially? The kids only got invited to the weddings when the bride and groom was approximately their age or if they were related or really close friends of the family. Neither of that was the case here. So why the invitation? Could it be that Rory asked them to invite him as well? Hmm, he'd have thought that she understood by now that she shouldn't encourage her folk like that. On the other hand, perhaps they asked her to invite some friends of hers. And she may have thought that as they had even helped her a little she'd invite him, Finn and Colin. Then again, she knew exactly how much they hated social gatherings like that. Would she really invite them, despite all that? Were his friends even invited as well? Of course it could also be a further try of Rory's grandparents to push them together. _That _would make a lot more sense.

"Logan? You still there?" His mother asked, bringing him once again out of his musings.

Shit. This so wasn't a good idea. He and Rory on the wedding – well, renewal thing of her grandparents? Bad, bad, bad idea. "Mom…" he started.

"No, Logan. You're coming and that's it. I already spoke with Jewel and she's delighted by the prospect. Not to mention that I already called Emily to say that we all love to come and that we'll bring a friend with us. So all's set, Logan," his mother informed him.

Jewel! He had totally forgotten that Jewel was coming this weekend. And she was coming. He had e-mailed her to be sure he wouldn't get set up again by his mother this weekend when he went home in order to meet her. He wanted to see her – but not at that wedding thing of Rory's grandparents! If he showed up with her there Rory had to think that they'd be dating and that so wasn't what he wanted her to think! Yet, it was unavoidable that she'd think that and…

His rambling thoughts stopped and he frowned.

And that would actually be just perfect. Let her think Jewel's his date. A date important enough for him that he'd take her to such a social event. Where they went together with his parents. If she really had any hopes for a relationship between the two of them, it sure would be gone afterwards. And if he stopped the heavy flirting with her then she'd get that he was simply looking for a friendship with her. That had to work, wouldn't it?

"Okay, Mom, when and where is it?" Logan asked calmly.

"And if you refuse… what?" his mother asked so perplexed that he had to smile a little.

"Sure, I'd love to come. I just need the details now," he answered her sweetly.

"Are you joking?" she asked mistrustfully.

"Mom…" Logan reminded her with a sigh.

"You should get the invitation in the mail today," his mother said, once she recovered from her shock. "Everything you need to know is there. Just let me know if you want to come with us in the limousine or come in your own car."

"Will do. Bye, Mom," Logan quickly said his farewell and then hang up the phone, not wanting to have to talk to her any longer.

Closing his eyes, he let himself fall back onto his bed and he sighed. He just hoped he did the right thing.

* * *

Logan avoided meeting Rory or his friends all day. While he planned to avoid Rory completely until the wedding in two days he knew that he couldn't avoid his friends forever. So he was on his way over to the pub right now where he most likely would find them. He just hoped they'd let the Rory matter be. Probably total wishful thinking on his part – but what was life without hope?

It wasn't hard to spot them as they were both in their usual corner booth – thankfully not the one from where he had overheard Marty and his friends - to get some drinks first before they'd start to mingle with the crowd. Slowly, he first walked to Rick to get a bottle of scotch before he went over to join his friends, putting the bottle in the middle of the table.

"Hey, guys," he greeted them as he shrugged out of his jacket.

Finn and Colin both looked up, glanced briefly at the bottle, then at each other, then back to Logan. "Hey. We missed you at lunch," Colin told him, his voice normal like always.

Logan nodded. "Sorry, I had to work on my Modern History paper."

"Poor, poor boy. Here, drink," Finn commented and pushed a glass he had just filled from Logan's bottle over to Logan before he shook his head. "I just don't get it. Why would they call it Modern History? That's a contradiction in itself."

Logan smiled. "I dunno, Finn. Perhaps they just figured that everything that happened in the last fifty years equals to be modern in retrospect of events that can go back up to a few million years."

Finn shook his head. "It's still history. And history is old."

"And I think you better drink some more because no matter how long you'll philosophize about it, it won't change," Colin suggested mildly. "So why not talk about something more pleasant? Like our plans for the weekend for example."

Involuntarily, Logan grimaced. There was nothing pleasant to discuss there.

"Well, though I know how hard it will be for you to have to do without me, count me out. Lope's coming and we'll meet up in New York," Finn said, smiling.

"Lope's coming?" Logan asked, surprised. Finn's sister seldom made the trip from Paris, where she was currently studying at the Sorbonne, back to the States.

Finn nodded. "Called me just today. Said she needed a desperate break from the obnoxious French and if she heard one more French word for the extended weekend, she's gonna scream." He frowned. "Besides, she said she had something to tell me." He muttered, more darkly.

"You think Jean finally popped the question?" Colin asked curiously.

Finn shrugged. "I don't think so, no. For that she wasn't bouncy enough."

Logan exchanged a secret smile with Colin. Perhaps Finn was right, but then again, he never was Jean's biggest fan. Not that Jean wasn't a great guy. He was. Otherwise, Finn's sister wouldn't have looked twice at him. But Finn still resented him that Lope left the States to go study in France because of Jean. And it was no secret among his friends that Finn terribly missed his big sister ever since. If she and Jean would marry then she more than likely would stay in France forever and that prospect didn't help exactly to warm Finn up towards Jean.

"Well, make sure you'll give her a kiss from me," Logan told him with a smirk.

Finn threw him one of his few glares.

"I got orders to show up home Saturday, to discuss some important matters," Colin quickly said. "Could be that it's time for the next divorce, who knows." He shrugged. "And in the evening I'll meet the lovely Kayla for what hopefully will turn out to be a long and satisfying date," he added with a leery grin.

Frowning, Logan took a sip of his drink. The Gilmores wedding renewal celebration definitely wasn't on his friends' schedule. Didn't look as if they received invitations like he had for that matter. His frown deepened. He wasn't sure if he liked this exclusivity. It didn't really matter if he had Rory or her grandparents to thank for this invitation – but it definitely wasn't a good sign, either way.

"And what are your plans?" Colin asked him.

Logan looked up and hesitated. But they'd learn eventually about his whereabouts on Saturday anyway, so he sighed and looked down into his glass. "I'm going to Richard and Emily's wedding – well, vow renewal," he said quietly.

When his friends said nothing, he looked up again to see them frowning at him.

"Richard and Emily? Gilmore? As in Rory's grandparents?" Colin asked with surprise.

Rolling his eyes, Logan nodded.

"Why would you go there?" Finn asked, giving him a strange look.

"I got an invitation. And Mom's orders to not even think about not showing up," Logan answered with a shrug, trying to play it down.

"You got an invitation? Why? I didn't get one. Did you get one, Finn?" Colin asked, frowning.

Finn shook his head and kept his eyes on Logan. "You think the invitation comes from Reporter Girl?"

Logan shrugged.

"I don't think so. In that case she probably would just have given him the invitation herself," Colin voiced his doubts. "That rather smells like her grandparents. They want you two to get together ever since they found out you know each other."

All too true. It didn't matter though who had sent the invitation. It was just another sign that he had to stop this circus as soon as possible and this wedding was offering itself as the perfect place to do just that.

"What are you planning to do?" Finn asked knowingly.

Logan glanced at him, then looked back down into his glass. "Nothing. I'll go, give the bride and groom my best wishes, eat the undoubtedly good lunch they're going to serve us and otherwise will have a good time catching up with Jewel and leave with her as early as possible."

Again, his friends were silent. This time though, Logan didn't look up to see their reactions.

Eventually, Colin spoke. "Jewel? You're taking Jewel to that wedding or whatever it is? Are you crazy? What will Rory think when you show up there with another girl? She'll think Jewel's your girlfriend or something like that!"

Logan said nothing, just took another sip of his drink.

Out of the corner of his eyes he saw Finn shake his head. "No, Colin. Not crazy. Just stupid. Incredibly stupid," he said quietly and the disappointment in his voice actually made Logan glance over to him, briefly.

Frowning, Colin looked at Finn, then back to Logan and his eyes widened. "No…" he said, shaking his head. "You're going to _dump_ Rory?"

Angry, Logan threw a glare his way. "I'm doing no such thing. In order for me to dump her I would need to have some sort of a relationship with Ace in the first place. Which I don't. We're friends." He paused and his eyes dropped. "That's all we'll ever be."

"Logan, for Heaven's sake! Don't be such an ass! Rory…" Colin started.

"Is a friend," Logan interrupted him, meeting his eyes. "Nothing more. And you better get finally used to that. I'm not going to date Rory. It's not fair to her. Or to me for that matter. So stop trying to see something more than friendship than there is."

Colin held his eyes and said nothing. Logan waited. He couldn't back down, not now. Not in this matter. It had been hard enough to make this decision. He didn't need his best friend to keep the wound open and fresh.

Their staring contest was interrupted by Finn standing up, grabbing his jacket. "I'm heading out to New York."

"Now?" Logan asked slowly.

Finn only glanced at him and nodded. "Lope's coming tomorrow afternoon. If I drive out now I'll save myself of getting up early tomorrow morning in order to be in time to go pick her up from the airport. I should be back Monday."

He took a few steps, then stopped, turned and leaned down to Logan. "Think long and hard, mate, if you really want to risk loosing that chance. That girl. 'Cause you sure as hell won't have another chance with her, mate," he said in a low voice into Logan's ear, straightened and left.

Logan sat frozen in place as he felt dread spreading through him.

Colin looked after their friend, then back to Logan's pale face and shook his head. He too grabbed his jacket and slipped out of the booth where he remained standing for a moment, looking down at Logan.

"You know, I never thought you'd be hearing me say that, but I've got to agree with that bartender: you don't deserve her if you're too chicken to even risk taking that chance," he said quietly. "I don't know what Finn told you, but he's more than likely right. So think Logan, think before you go and ruin every chance you may have had with Rory. You'll regret it." He gave Logan's shoulder a squeeze and then left as well.

Feeling very cold, Logan remained seated, staring into his glass. He had expected that Colin and Finn wouldn't be the biggest fan of his plan. But he hadn't expected them to react so strongly about this decision. Why couldn't they see that he didn't want to do this any more than they seemed to want him to do it? Couldn't they see that he had to do it, though? So Rory wouldn't get hurt any further? So he wouldn't get hurt?

"I'm doing the right thing," he whispered, desperately trying to believe that.

* * *

"Well, if isn't Logan Huntzberger as I live and breathe."

Logan turned from the bar with a big smile. "Jewel," he greeted her and quickly gave her a hug before standing back and giving her a once over. "Looking good."

Jewel grinned. "Fishing for compliments, Huntz?"

Logan shrugged. "Don't need to, Jewel. I know I look good and am God's gift to women."

She leaned against the bar beside him. "I see your ego is as big as ever."

"Always," Logan assured her with a grin and looked past her, scanning the room for his parents. "And where are Mr. and Mrs. Frost?"

"They sent me ahead with the limousine. Mitchum's running late coming from a meeting," she told him.

Logan raised an eyebrow. At lunch time on a Saturday? He shook his head. "Damn, his newest conquest must really be good," he commented dryly.

"Logan," Jewel chastised lightly.

Logan shrugged. "What? It's nothing new after all."

"Doesn't mean you have to be so sarcastic about that," she told him defensively. "It isn't funny after all, you know."

Frowning, Logan gave her a strange look. That didn't sound like Jewel at all. She noticed his look and sighed, shaking her head. "Sorry. Let's just not talk about it, okay?"

"Sure," Logan answered with another shrug. "Want something to drink?"

"White wine would be nice," she nodded and turned to look at the room while Logan ordered the wine for her. "Classy," she commented when the bartender served her wine.

"That's Emily Gilmore," Logan commented and gave the room a quick once over as well. It did look nice. A bit too traditional and fancy for his liking, but it undoubtedly was proof of a good taste in such things.

"Do I know Emily Gilmore?" Jewel asked, taking a sip of her wine.

Logan thought back to the times Jewel was here and then slowly shook his head. "I don't think so. The Gilmores are big in insurance. And Emily is of course a DAR girl."

Jewel nodded slowly. "So I've heard from Shira." She smiled. "She also told me about their scandalous daughter. Had a baby at sixteen, and then running away from home."

Uncomfortable, Logan turned away. He wasn't keen to talking about Rory's mother.

"You think she's gonna be here? I'd love to see that woman and how she's holding her own with this obnoxious group," Jewel said.

Logan sighed and nodded. "They're here. I think Lorelai's even the bridesmaid."

"Interesting," Jewel said. "And who are they?" she asked curious.

"Hmm?" he asked.

"You said _they_'re here. Who are they?" Jewel repeated his words.

"Lorelai and Rory," he reluctantly told her, cursing himself for his slip. He definitely didn't want to talk about Rory.

"Rory?"

"Emily and Richard's granddaughter," Logan clarified.

"Oh… the scandal child," Jewel commented dryly.

"She's not," Logan said sharply, straightening a bit. "She isn't a child anymore for one. And it's for sure not her fault that she's been born out of wedlock. Not that that is anything unusual nowadays. Really Jewel, I thought at least you aren't so bad as the rest of this dusty bunch of hypocrites."

"Wow, Logan, back down," Jewel told him and frowned. "I didn't mean to offend anyone."

For a moment, Logan stared at her, then cursed. "Sorry. I… I've seen better days," he muttered an apology to her. Since Colin and Finn had left him in the bar, he hadn't thought much about anything else other than their words. He was still convinced that he was doing the right thing – despite the miserable feeling in his gut that got worse by the minute. And now that he was actually here at the Windsor Club, with the ceremony to begin in only a few minutes… with only so little time before he'd let things end with Rory once and for all – he was a nervous wreck.

Besides, he just couldn't stand hearing anyone talk like that about his Ace, not even Jewel. Didn't they ever think just how much they were hurting her with such casual, but oh so cruel comments?

Jewel sighed and waved it away. "It's okay. I've seen better days as well," she said bitterly.

Catching up on the tone, Logan looked closer at her. "Trouble in paradise?" he asked.

"That's one way to word it," Jewel told him and made a face. She emptied her glass and looked around at the guests who started to fill the rows. "Look, let's make a deal: no unpleasant talk. Let's just get this thing behind us and talk about the fun things we missed in each other lives."

That was just fine for him, so Logan nodded and quickly emptied his own glass. "Sounds great. So… I've heard Keith lost his Jaguar and his Harley to your granny. I'm dying to hear that story," he said, referring to her older brother. Like Finn, he was always a guarantee for a fun story.

Her face brightening, Jewel laughed. "Well, it involves my brother darling being drunk, Granny pumped up on whatever drug they have her on now and a game of Black Jack."

"Sounds promising," Logan grinned and looked around. It was time to take their places. "And screams for details. I mean, how could you leave those two alone with each other? Wasn't the penis thing any lesson at all for you?" he asked, steering her toward a row on the left side, where he had spotted some free seats, pretty much in the middle of it all. There was no way that he wanted the Gilmores to spot him right away. Any of them, may they be young or old.

"Well, I'm innocent. I was in London at that time. But you know Mom and Dad," Jewel defended herself.

Logan gave a short laugh at that. Oh yeah, he knew Garrett and Olympia Landerson only too well. Jewel's parents rivaled his in being the perfect society couple, caught in a loveless marriage, with little regard to the offspring unless it concerned the question of the heirloom and inheritance. The Landersons and the Huntzbergers were best friends for years now. In fact, he knew for certain that his mother had an off and on again affair going on with Garrett.

"Is it true that your granny is refusing to give them back to him?" he wanted to know as they sat down.

Jewel grinned. "He's begging her for two months now and has more or less tried everything to get his babies back. She's adamant though. He hasn't dared to go buy himself another car or bike. He isn't that stupid."

"Most guys are if their balls are at stake," Logan told her with a smirk.

She rolled her eyes.

"What? It's true," Logan said. "She'd have his balls for that, you know that."

"Well, yeah," she admitted, her grin deepening. "So Keith is currently forced to rely solely on the limousine. It sure is fun to watch."

"I bet," Logan nodded. "Any chance he's getting his car and bike back soon?"

"Nope," Jewel shook her head with certainty and lost some of her cheerfulness. "Not until Granny thinks he's learned his lesson."

"What lesson?" Logan wanted to know. Granny Landerson was famous for her lessons. Actually, Granny Landerson was one of a kind. Always speaking her mind, never hesitating to voice her opinion, speaking the truth, if you wanted to hear it or not. She was strong-minded, stubborn and relentless in her revenge. He liked the old bat fiercely. It was thanks to her that Jewel and Keith turned out halfway normal. She sure had more to do with raising those two than Garrett and Olympia. Needless to say that both Jewel and Keith loved her deeply.

Jewel's face darkened. "To not drink and drive," she said quietly so no one of the people around them could hear them.

Surprised, Logan frowned. "He did?" he asked, in all seriousness.

She nodded.

"Bad?" Logan asked.

Again, she nodded. "He first got a ticket. One week later he had an accident. Swerved to the wrong side of the road, had to veer the car around in order to avoid crashing into a truck, lost control and sailed right off the road. The only reason he didn't get hurt was because he was way beyond being blasted," she said, the anger in her voice telling Logan even more just how lucky Keith must have been. "Two days later Granny striped him naked."

Good of her. What he didn't get was why Keith needed that at all. Keith wasn't a heavy drinker. And way too responsible for his age, despite his easy going nature and great sense of adventure. "Why?" he asked.

Jewel sighed. "He's having a hard time dealing with reality lately. Mom and Dad expect him to be married within a year and start producing an heir. Once Vince got wind of that and saw that Keith didn't really do anything against that he broke up with him. Ever since then…" Jewel shook her head.

Vince and Keith had been together for over two years now. Logan knew how much Keith loved his boyfriend. He sighed. And he thought he had it bad. He may be forced into a loveless marriage with some trophy wife – but at least she would still be the gender he preferred. To be gay and of high society, actually being the heir to some big family fortune – now _that_ really sucked.

"We're breaking our deal," Jewel said. "Come on. Tell me about Finn and Colin. I bet there's something to laugh about for hours."

Logan smiled and shrugged. "Nothing to tell, sorry. Colin's still Colin and Finn's still Finn."

"Please, you can do better than that, Huntz!" Jewel protested. "Finn still crazy about redheads?"

"Is the world still turning and revolving around the sun?" Logan asked back sarcastically.

Jewel laughed. "That's almost the second year in a row now. I can't remember him being obsessed for so long before."

Logan shook his head. "No, his blond phase was longer. I give him another year or so."

"The usual?" Jewel asked.

"Double or nothing," Logan told her, giving her a challenging look.

"Hard conditions you drive here," Jewel said dryly.

Logan shrugged. "Take it or leave it."

"I'm on. Oh, I think it's starting. Here comes the groom…" she frowned. "Hmm, is it still a groom when he's already married?" she asked thoughtfully.

Logan was just about to answer her when the words died on his lips as his eyes fell onto Richard's best 'man' and he was certain that his heart stopped for a moment as the air left his lungs in a rush.

"God, look at that suit! It's perfect!" Jewel squealed beside him, not that he really registered her. "I want one, just like that. Forget that: I need one, just like that!"

Fuck.

How the hell was it possible to look so damn good in a suit? He didn't like the lesbian look. He preferred his girls in skirts or in really tight, womanly jeans or some other, similar pants. _Not_ in men's clothes. But if his Ace in that tux wasn't the damn sexiest thing he'd ever seen in his life… She was smiling up at Richard, her face shining brightly as the sun with her eyes sparkling so much that he could even see them from this distance and Logan's eyes trailed down that luscious body of hers, clad in a black suit, obviously designed especially for her to hug that perfect figure of hers and drive every man crazy with want who laid eyes on her in that outfit. He sure as hell felt at least one body part of his go crazy with want. Grinding his teeth, Logan forced himself to look down and take some deep breaths in order to get the control over his body back. It helped that he only had been able to see the upper half of his Ace's body – he doubted there'd been any salvation for him if he had seen her legs as well.

Damn, damn, damn… how was he supposed to break it off with her today if he couldn't even look at her without getting a hard-on?

The crowd around him turned their heads and blindly, Logan followed, desperate to look at anything other than at his Ace.

Bad idea.

Because the woman that walked down the aisle now, clad in some silvery dress with a light bluish tone in it did nothing to get his mind away from his Ace. Quite the contrary. He'd recognize those blue eyes anywhere and though they were not as breathtakingly beautiful as those of his Ace, it was obvious that Rory must have gotten those killer eyes from her mother. The dark hair was another telltale sign, though Rory's was lighter in color and more silky from the looks of it. But it wasn't just the eyes and hair. It was the similar figure, the similar way that woman walked and smiled and held herself. He had no doubt that this was Rory's mother. He risked a glance back to Rory and saw her beaming at her mother, who seemed to smile back at her daughter. Quickly, Logan looked away from both of them.

"Damn… she sure cleans up nice," Jewel whispered beside him as Lorelai Gilmore the Second walked by them.

Logan just nodded, not trusting his voice. Yeah, that she did. And he couldn't help but think that in twenty years, his Ace would probably look similar to her mother right now. Simply gorgeous. She sure was already beautiful today – and her mother was proof that she probably always would stay that way. Even worse though was that Logan found himself liking that vision of an older Rory very much. Too much.

This wasn't good. He was here to put an end to him and Rory. He shouldn't be thinking about her in twenty years. And he for sure shouldn't like what he was imagining here.

Music played up, announcing the arrival of the bride and the guests stood up. Rather reluctantly, Logan followed them, extremely grateful that his pants were rather wide and his jacket long enough to hide even the last trace of his embarrassment. Desperately, he tried to keep his eyes on anything other than his Ace. His eyes fell on Emily. Thankfully, her resemblance to Rory wasn't so stark… yet, again he found himself thinking that even Emily looked pretty good for her age. As Finn would say, there are some damn good genes running in that family.

Another thing he shouldn't be thinking about.

Emily arrived at the end of the center aisle and he watched as Richard, obviously only having eyes for his wife, stepped forward to take her hand. Logan looked at the expression in the older man's eyes and couldn't help but be a little jealous. There stood a man, who like him had once been an heir, with no prospects of love at all. Logan had heard the story several times. He had been engaged to some society girl, bred to be the perfect trophy wife. Then Emily had come to Yale and it didn't take long for Richard to break off his arranged engagement and betrothal so that he would be able to marry Emily. It's been quite the scandal. Of course, it helped though that Emily came from a far more prestigious and wealthier family than the first fiancée. With her parents dying in a plane crash, Emily, instead of marrying the first man coming her way, took on the family fortune at eighteen and then went to attend a top university. Something extraordinary for a woman back in those times. A lot of the society people had shaken their heads then, predicting that Emily would never find a suitable husband with those strange ambitions and ideas in her head. Richard though seemed to like this ambitious girl just fine. So he broke out of the pattern set for him and married for love. And now, forty years later, he was renewing the same vows he had taken all those years ago, once again bonding his life together with the woman he loved, a lovely daughter and a beautiful granddaughter right beside them.

It actually was like a little fairytale because in high society, love marriages were scarce. And a happy marriage was even rarer. It was one of the prices you had to pay by being born into this circle. Yet, here standing were two people who had everything. Name, money, prestige _and _love and happiness. If they could have it… why not all of them? What was so wrong in marrying someone you wanted to marry, someone you love, someone who fits with you, instead of being trapped in some arranged but suitable connection, damned to a loveless life where affairs are the general rule?

Involuntarily, his eyes wandered to the right of Richard, where Rory was standing in her suit, watching enwrapped how her grandparents once again pledged their love for each other, her eyes shining brightly and a soft smile lightening up her entire being.

He caught himself starring at her and quickly tore his eyes away from her. This wasn't working. Trying to get his attention away from Rory, he leaned over to Jewel. Jewel in turn leaned closer to him to hear what he had to say.

"Try imagine Mom and Dad doing such a thing," he said lightly, grinning at the thought that truly was hilarious.

She laughed quietly and leaned up to whisper into his ear, laying her arm onto his shoulder. "Or my parents. I wonder how long it would take for the guests to start snickering at the hilarity of such an obvious pretense."

Logan grinned. "If Finn's there I'd bet for two minutes most."

"If Granny's there, I think she'll beat him with at least thirty seconds," Jewel countered.

Yep, that was absolutely a possibility, Logan thought and turned his attention back to the ceremony taking place in front of them. The judge was just coming to the part where the couple had to repeat their vows. From the looks of it, this official ceremony of the festivities would soon be over. Thank God. That meant the bar was once again open and he and Jewel could loose themselves in the crowd, with him not having to stare at Rory time and time again. Once again his eyes slid to the slim figure in a suit and he did a double take, frowning. Something had happened. She wasn't looking as happy as before, not anymore. Her shine had dimmed in the short while he had had his attention elsewhere. Actually, if he didn't know it better, she looked upset all of a sudden. Why? What on Earth could have happened in that short moment to make her upset while being at the wedding renewal of her grandparents? He kept his eyes on her, watching her with concern, trying to find out what could be the reason for her sudden mood change. After a moment, her eyes slid sideward and met his, but only for a fleeting moment as she looked away almost immediately. Actually, he wasn't quite sure if their eyes really had met or if he had just imagined that.

The crowd around him started clapping and cheering, and automatically, he joined in as he saw Emily and Richard turning towards the crowd, both beaming with happiness, and, their hands firmly clasped together, walking down the aisle, with Lorelai and Rory following them.

Deep in thoughts, he watched Rory disappear around a corner with her family.

Some red-headed woman he dimly recognized stood up to tell the guests to please move on to the Rose Room for a late lunch and the rest of the festivities.

Beside him, Jewel stood up and stretched. "Well, that was interesting. The same as always but at the same time, oh, so different."

Tearing his eyes away from the direction Rory had disappeared into, Logan turned his attention back to Jewel and stood up. "Yep, you can say that out loud," he answered truthfully. "Nonetheless, I'm in desperate need of a drink right now."

Jewel laughed. "As if that's anything new."

"Hey, you make me sound like, Finn!" Logan protested while they patiently waited for their row to spill out and follow the other guests over to the Rose Room.

"Nope, then I'd have said that I'm surprised you made it through the ceremony without pulling out once your trusted friend out of some pocket. And don't even deny that there's not a flask somewhere. It's not the first time we're together on a social gathering, remember?" Jewel told him nonchalantly and Logan shrugged. He wasn't going to deny anything. "How's my favorite Australian by the way? You haven't given me a proper answer yet."

"Sorry to miss your visit, but his sister is home for the weekend and they're probably making the Big Apple a very dangerous place to be at, right now." Logan smiled. "He said Lope's got something to tell him."

Jewel grinned. "Jean finally proposed."

"Finn thinks not," Logan said, smirking.

"And you?" Jewel asked knowingly.

"I wait for the invitation," he said truthfully. "Finn likes to keep living in denial."

The people in the row started to clear out and he guided Jewel towards the big ballroom as well.

Jewel laughed. "I'm glad I have to go back tomorrow. No way do I want to be around when Finn's coming back, whining about his sister marrying that Frenchman."

Logan made a face. "Thanks for reminding me."

"Anytime," Jewel told him sweetly. "And what about Honor? Josh still hasn't popped the question?"

"Apparently not," Logan answered, shaking his head. He was pretty sure that once it happened, Honor would come to tell him first.

"It's only a matter of time now, I think," Jewel said.

"Probably," Logan nodded. He knew Josh was crazy about his sister. Josh really had to love her if he got to know the family and still stuck with her, for three years already. And now probably even considered marrying into the mighty Huntzberger family. Logan also knew that Honor loved him. And while he personally thought that Honor could have done better, he also wanted her happy. Josh was a good man, treated his sister as a goddess and Honor loved him. So that was good enough for Logan. Though he had to admit that it was strange thinking about Honor as a married woman.

"Your parents accepting him now?" Jewel wanted to know.

Logan snorted. "Let's say they tolerate him. And it looks as if they finally accepted the fact that he's probably going to marry Honor."

"Impressive. But I'm happy for Honor," Jewel commented with a sigh, then gave him a look. "What about you? I noticed Shira mentioned some Fallon girl awfully often. Do I hear distant wedding bells there?"

Frowning, Logan stopped to check on which table they were seated. So his mother already started to talk about a possible connection between the Huntzbergers and the Fallons to other people? Fuck. Looked like he had to have a few words with her. No matter what, there was no way that he'd let them marry him off to that blond bimbo. He turned back to Jewel to guide her towards their table.

"If Mom has her way we'd be married by the end of year. But it's not going to happen," Logan told Jewel firmly.

"No?"

"Never," Logan answered vehemently. "I've met the girl only once, and that was enough for a lifetime, believe me." He shook his head. "Mom set me up with her last Friday. Said you'd be coming, forbid me to bring A… a date of my own and when I got there she kindly informed me that she mixed up the dates, that you'd be only coming this weekend, but not to worry, she arranged a date for me. Ugh… and now she even talks to you about that stupid Fallon girl. She's obsessed with me marrying that girl! Can you believe her?"

"You bet I can," Jewel sighed. Arriving at their table, Logan pulled out a chair for her. "Something similar happened to me two weeks ago. Dad's on business in London and as usual we set up a date in the club. I go join Daddy on the tennis court, expecting to have a match with Wanda and her dad as usual and instead Dad tells me that they unfortunately couldn't come. But Quentin Rilton with his son Xavier was there to fill in. Of course they teamed Xavier and me up. And afterwards we went to have lunch. And then a round of Bridge." She shook her head as well. "I never saw Dad having so much time on hand like on that day. For dinner, the mothers joined the joyful group as well."

Logan made a face. "Nice," he commented sarcastically.

Jewel nodded. "The only relief was that Xavier wanted to be there even less than I wanted to." Again she sighed. "What's scary is that such matchmaking tries of the parental front happen more and more often."

"Tell me about it! A few months ago Finn, Colin and I were ordered to go to some alumni party. Turned out to be a flesh viewing for some poor girl." Logan smirked. "Imagine us on a party with only one girl. Finn nearly cried."

"I bet! He probably just turned and left, with you two running right after him." Jewel laughed. "And who was the girl? Someone I know?"

For a moment, Logan debated to tell her the truth. After all, he wanted to avoid Rory the best he could. But then, Jewel didn't know Rory, or that he and his friends actually were at least friends with her now. So he shrugged. "It was for Rory, actually."

"Rory? The granddaughter?" Jewel asked surprised. "Hmm, wouldn't have thought that she needs a flesh viewing. It certainly can't be difficult to find a boy for her. I mean, if she looks like that in a suit, I can only imagine how she looks in a gown or something like that."

Oh, he so should have avoided the truth. He had just invited Jewel to talk about her. _And_ made him think of his Ace in some of the dresses he had seen her in so far.

He shrugged again. "From what I heard her grandparents weren't too happy with her boyfriend and thought to throw some more suitable guys at her."

"Ah…" Jewel nodded knowingly and her eyes traveled past him. "That makes more sense. Hey, do you know her a bit better by any chance? So you could get me together with her. I really want to know where she got that suit. I need one. Just imagine the look on Mom's face when I show up to the next social thing in such a suit."

But, Logan having turned to see what caught Jewel's eyes, couldn't have imagined that even if his life would have depended on it as his mind was filled with one girl and one girl alone. There was his Ace, entering the room in the middle of her mother and some guy he had no idea who he was. But from the way he looked at Rory's mom he guessed it was the boyfriend Rory had mentioned once or twice. Not that his brain registered much more than his Ace. This time, nothing obscured a full view of her. And he had been right. Seeing her long legs with delicate feet clad in high heels completing her outfit was the death of him. Cursing inwardly, he quickly turned away from her.

It was hot in here. Way too hot. And he didn't even have a drink to cool down or wet his suddenly very dry mouth.

"I'm thirsty. You want something also?" he asked Jewel, rather abruptly. And his voice was slightly hoarse as well, but there was nothing he could do about that now.

Thankfully, she didn't seem to notice anything, her attention still on the younger Gilmores, he guessed. She nodded though. "Red wine would be nice."

"Okay, be right back," he promised and got up too quickly and somehow stiffly walk over to the bar, careful to not look over at Rory and her family again.

He hated this. He usually hadn't had such problems keeping his body under control. But with his Ace he was just powerless to the deceitful reactions of his own body. Why had she to look so sinfully sexy and beautiful and innocent and cute at the same time anyway? He could handle sexy. He could handle beautiful. There was no problem with innocent and cute for him. But a mixture of all that? Knowing that she was smart and witty on top of all that as well? Any man with blood in his veins had to go crazy when faced with a woman who was a combination of all of that. And that was the girl he simply wanted as a friend… or at least couldn't afford to become anything more than a friend. For their sake.

Right. He needed to remember that he was doing this for both of them, for their sake. It was the right thing to do. He couldn't date her like he dated the other girls. He just couldn't.

And he'd better remember that. Remember his plan.

Biting his lips, he stepped up to the bar and ordered the red wine for Jewel and a big double scotch for himself with lots and lots of ice in it.

Once he had the drinks, he turned to go back to his place. Still desperate for something cool and wet down his throat, he quickly took a sip of his scotch. Good. That felt good. Before he could stop himself he looked to his left, into the general direction of where he had last seen Rory. He could still see her mom with her guy. Another man had joined them, talking to them, a man Logan barely recognized as the sorry looking man in search of his Ace from a few weeks before who had turned out to actually be her father. Well, that would probably explain the tension among them, he could even sense it from where he was. But there was no trace of his Ace though. Strange. He could have bet she was still close from the way his skin was tingling in that strange way it only tingled when his Ace was around.

Stop. He tried to avoid Rory, he reminded himself, annoyed with himself and with that thought turned his head to look straight forward to Jewel at their table.

"Here you go," he said and put the glass of wine in front of her and sat down again while taking another sip. Reminding himself of his plan again, he turned his back to the room to give Jewel his full attention – and avoid seeing Rory. His skin still tingled. Plus, he could feel the hairs on his neck stand up. So he was pretty sure that she was still somewhere close. Hell, who was he kidding? She for sure was still somewhere in this room and he wouldn't put it past Rory to have an affect on him even if she was in the farthest corner from him. Especially today.

"Hey! It's high time you finally tell me about Fiji," Jewel told him, looking expectantly at him.

Logan groaned. "Is that really necessary?" he wanted to know. He was sick of talking about Fiji.

But Jewel nodded and leaned forward to whisper conspirationally. "I hadn't had a chance to hear the story first hand so far. All I heard were rumors. Like you three idiots having a party in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with twenty-five showgirls you hired from Vegas on board and being way beyond blasted and somehow gotten the harebrained idea to use the planks of the boat for a little fire."

At the absurdity of that rumor, Logan had to laugh out loud. This was a new one. Still chuckling, he shook his head. "I want you to know that we three as prime examples of male virility would never have to hire one single girl to accompany us."

Jewel's eyes widened. "You don't want to tell me that this absurd nonsense is actually true, do you?"

"Please," he snorted. "Yeah, we're not always the most sensible ones, I can admit that, and we for sure aren't always very sober, but I can guarantee you that we're not _that_ stupid, contrary to common belief."

"So how come then that your dear boat is at the bottom of the South Pacific?" Jewel asked, her eyes glinting.

"You won't give up, would you?" Logan asked with a frown.

"Never."

Logan sighed. "Okay. But really, it's nothing spectacular. Very common, very boring."

"Hard to believe with the three of you," Jewel commented dryly.

"Ha, ha, very funny," Logan countered and took another sip. "Sorry to disappoint you, but that's how it is. We got surprised by a storm and had to sail in. Not having much choice we had two places to head to, both unknown for us. Finn voted for one, I for the other, Colin stayed neutral, so we flipped a coin. Finn won. Turned out to be bad luck 'cause the coast there was full of reefs." He shrugged. "The storm threw us right onto one, causing a big leak, too big for the pumps to drain the leaking water. We got into the motor boat to sail over to the nearby beach from where we watched my boat sink." He made a face. He really had liked that boat. "So you see, nothing out of the ordinary. And technically it was Finn's fault. It was his idea to sail there in the first place."

Jewel smiled. "Of course. And that's all? No drunken party, no orgy, no Bermuda-Triangle-like phenomenon?"

"That's the whole story, I swear," Logan gave his word.

"Too bad. I really expected more from you three," Jewel said, sighing dramatically.

"We'll try to do better next time," Logan laughed.

"You do that," she nodded. Her eyes once again traveled past him and a small smile appeared on her face. She leaned forward to lay a hand on his arm, stroking it, which made him give her a strange look. "I think you have a stalker," she whispered to him.

Groaning, Logan frowned. He wasn't in the mood to be tailed by some bimbo girl hoping to get something from him tonight. "Who's it?" he wanted to know, trying to remember if he had seen any girls other than Jewel and Rory around so far. He came up with nothing.

"It's that granddaughter. Rory?" she told him quietly.

Ace?

His head whipped around to look for her – but he couldn't see Rory anywhere. "I don't…"

"Oh, she left a few moments before. But for a while she stood there behind that big guy, peeking around him to sneak a look at us here and there," Jewel told him with a chuckle. "It was kind of cute actually. And I saw her watching you while you got the drinks at the bar."

"She did?" he asked softly, scanning the room for his favorite brown-haired girl. There she was, hugging her father.

"She sure did. But she didn't seem to be too happy about my presence. Not that that's anything new," Jewel continued to tell him her observations. "Though she acted differently than most girls. She looked more disappointed and sad than angry and jealous with me for having your momentary attention."

She had looked sad? Uncomfortably, Logan bit his lips and watched her go over to the bar with her dad. He didn't want to make her sad. On the other hand, she seemed to believe that Jewel was more to him than a friend he knew since forever. That was just what he had wanted her to believe wasn't it? Then why did he feel the need to go over to her and set things clear? He saw a big cup of coffee being put in front of her. Shaking his head, he turned back to Jewel, his thoughts though still on his Ace. What the hell should he just do with that girl?

"Hmm… say, Logan, you and that girl – do you have anything going on?"

Jewel's question made him look sharply over to her. "What?"

"You and this Rory. She one of your flings?" Jewel asked, her eyes staying unwavering on him.

Logan looked away from her and reached for his glass. "No."

"You sure?" Jewel asked doubtful.

"Look, I know her. Like I know dozens other girls. Her grandparents are friends with my parents. She goes to Yale, writes for the paper. So we run into each other here and there. We're sort of friends." He took another sip, willing himself to _not_ look back at Rory. "But I'm not going out with her. She's high society. Our families are friends. You honestly think I'd risk going out with such a girl?"

Of course that was all true. It was what had made him hesitate in the very first place to even think about going out with her. But the only thing that kept him now from her was that she simply was too special to be one of his girls. And he couldn't give her more than that. End of story. Now he just needed to figure out a way to convince his body of that fact. And his heart.

"Okay, okay… no need to get so aggressive about it," Jewel said, backing down from the subject.

Logan closed his eyes and sighed. "Sorry," he mumbled. He looked around and frowned. "I wonder what's taking Mom and Dad so long," he remarked, changing the topic.

Before Jewel could answer, the conductor of the twenty piece band spoke up. "Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to present to you for the first time, this century, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Gilmore."

The crowd who had started to take their places clapped and Richard led Emily into the middle of the ballroom. He seated her on a chair and took the microphone to give a speech. Logan listened with half an ear while his eyes once again settled down on his Ace who was sitting at a table across the room, sipping her coffee and not looking all too happy, though there was a smile appearing on her face while she listened to her grandfather's story about Lorelai suffering from chronic ear infection. He sighed inwardly. This simply wasn't working. Well, his plan with Jewel seemed to work, but he felt miserable about it. And the more he saw of her, the greater his doubts grew that he really could simply be friends with that girl.

Were Finn and Colin right? Was he making the biggest mistake of his life if he didn't give this, whatever it was that was between him and his Ace, at least a chance?

Simply having no clue anymore what to do about the situation, he looked down.

Not far from him, Richard came to the end of his speech. "Emily would tease me, saying, 'If only your name was Bill, then this could be our song.'" The crowd laughed and Richard turned to look deeply into Emily's eyes, who watched him with absolutely surprised amazement. "Well, Emily, for tonight, and tonight only, my name is Bill, and this is our song." The crowd awwwed and even Logan had to smile at the sweet gesture. "Hit the button, Johnny," Richard told the conductor and gave the microphone away before going over to Emily and drawing her into his arms for their first dance as husband and wife – well, their second first dance.

He felt Jewel lean forward to him and put her hand on his shoulder. "Don't tell anyone, but I really find this very cute. Actually, I'm working on not sniffling," she said softly into his ear as they watched Richard and Emily dancing, obviously lost into each other.

Logan sighed but said nothing. He could see where Jewel was coming from. This really was romantic, so romantic that he would cringe at the sweetness of this old couple if this was a movie. And he understood now why Rory had been so desperate in bringing her grandparents back together. Seeing them like that, they truly were perfect for each other. His eyes darted over to his Ace and he had to smile when for the moment, she was just happily watching her grandparents dance, now joined by other couples on the dance floor, including her mother and her boyfriend.

"So, how big is the chance that I can get you to dance with me, Huntz?"

At Jewel's question, he turned his head to look incredulously at Jewel. "Uh – like zero? Like a snowball surviving in hell has more chance than that happening?" he asked back. He hated dancing at such occasions and Jewel knew that only too well.

"Come on… just one dance. One just has to dance after such a sweet story," Jewel pleaded. "Look at it that way, perhaps it will bring us luck when we dance together with that couple who's together for forty years now, still happily in love with each other."

"Yeah, sure…" Logan answered sarcastically. "Sorry, Jewel. You'll have to find someone else. And you know that perfectly well."

"Pretty please?" Jewel begged.

"No." Logan shook his head. Nothing and no one would get him onto that dance floor. Dance with a girl at a wedding among this bunch of people and next thing you know it's _your_ wedding that's getting planned.

"You're so boring, you know that, Huntz?" Jewel pouted.

Logan shrugged. "If it comes to dancing I prefer boring, thank you very much."

"And you really, really, really won't dance with me at least one short dance?" Jewel though didn't give up so quickly. She could be stubborn.

Rolling his eyes, Logan shook his head. "I really, really, really won't dance. Not with you, not with anyone else."

"I'll give you a thousand bucks for a little cha-cha-cha," Jewel offered.

A snort was Logan's only answer.

"Okay, fine, I take the hint," Jewel sighed and scanned the room. Soon, she smiled. "Ah, there I see someone who surely won't refuse a beauty like me."

"I hope he has fast feet to get away from those death things you call your feet. Wish him good luck from me," Logan dryly said which earned him a slap on his arm.

"You're very funny today, Huntz," Jewel said and stood up. "I hope that old lady who's eyeing you up the whole time now will now fall all over you. You'll wish to be on the dance floor with me in no time."

"Tough luck," Logan said but did warily look into the direction where Jewel had pointed. And sure enough, there was the old redhead who seemed to function as some sort of wedding planner today, indeed eyeing him up. Quickly he looked away and took another sip, uncomfortable.

Jewel laughed, but thankfully said nothing and just set out for the bar where she seemed to have spotted someone she could drag onto the dance floor.

Alone now, he looked back over to Rory's table – but she was gone now. Quickly, he scanned the room for her, couldn't spot her anywhere though. Her mom was still dancing with her boyfriend. Richard and Emily were still on the dance floor as well. Where was she?

Suddenly, he grew aware of just what he was doing and with a groan, he brought his eyes to stare back down into his glass. Slowly, he let the golden liquid twirl.

He was torn. On one hand, he _knew_ that he and Rory was a bad idea. Starting with her being Richard and Emily's granddaughter and ending with her being what she was. Girlfriend material. On the other hand though, he just couldn't stop thinking about her. Searching for her, wherever he was going. Fantasizing and dreaming about her.

And if one thing had gotten clear so far today then it was that he obviously couldn't simply stop wanting her.

Unfortunately though, neither of these realizations really offered him a solution for his dilemma. He sighed sadly as he continued to stare into his glass.

Suddenly, he felt someone approaching him, and with the way the tingling started again and went into overdrive, he had a pretty good idea who it was. And sure enough, when he glanced sideway, there were those legs in those ridiculous trousers. Taking a deep breath to brace himself, he looked up at her, taking the time to admire her silently in her suit again.

He just couldn't let her know just how much he liked what he saw. So his comment was dry and rather short, sarcastic. "I like the suit. Cashmere?" He looked down into his glass, nervously fingering it. Would she notice how an effect she had on him if he drained the glass right now to cool himself down again? Probably.

Rory ignored his comment though. "I didn't know you were going to be here," she told him.

So him being here really hadn't been her idea. Strange. He should be glad about that. Yet, what he felt was rather disappointment.

Ridiculous.

"Really? I thought you put my name on the list," he said, turning on his chair and looked up at her.

"No," she said, shaking her head.

"Oh, well, it must be your grandparents invited me," he thought out loud, letting his eyes wander around the room. Tentatively, he took a sip of the drink, careful to keep it small. "My parents are around here somewhere," he added, waving at the room. At least he thought that they had gotten here in the meantime, not that he had seen them so far. But the room was big. And he for sure had had more important things to think about than to watch out for his parents.

"Oh… So you came with your parents?" she asked, giving him a sharp look.

"Yup," Logan said and looked away, unable to look any longer into her eyes. And to talk about his parents was sure the last thing he wanted to do – anytime. He stared a moment longer into his glass, then put it down. It wasn't as if the alcohol really helped him in any way anymore, anyway.

Her eyebrows rose. "And…?" she asked, probing.

Ah… so she wanted to know about Jewel, Logan thought with a smile. "And what?" he asked, dragging the words out, pretending to have no clue what she was aiming for.

"Where's the blonde?" she asked bluntly, surprising Logan a bit with her straightforwardness.

Holy shit, she really was jealous! And Logan had to admit that he liked that fact very, _very _much. "She's at the bar," he told her, unfazed. He wanted to see her squirm a little more.

Rory turned slightly to look over at the bar and nodded. "Oh, yeah… she's pretty."

Logan's eyebrows rose higher. "Yeah? You want me to hook you up?" he teased her dryly.

There was the blush he loved so much! "No… I was just saying…" she tried to say, flustered now.

God, he really loved when she squirmed in that cute way. He leaned forward a bit. "What were you just saying?" he probed her, having a hard time keeping the grin back now.

Rory pointed towards the bar. "That she's pretty. That you brought a pretty girl," Rory rambled, the blush deepening in her embarrassment. "She's pretty, and the two of you are pretty together. – In case you were wondering," she finished, waving helplessly at him.

Yeah, a squirming and rambling Ace was definitely a sight to behold and he couldn't stop the smile forming on his lips anymore. But while he stared into her eyes, Logan felt something shift deep inside him. "Jewel's a friend of the family, I've known her forever," he heard himself saying almost hurriedly, before he really realized it. "She's visiting her parents in town, and she had nothing to do, so she asked to tag along." He stopped himself. Oh, what the hell. It was already too late to pretend anything anymore anyway. "We're not dating," he clarified once and for all.

Her eyes stared into his and at the relief and joy in the blue depths he felt an incredible warm feeling spread out in his heart and suddenly, he was very glad that he had told her the truth about Jewel. He watched her eyes close and she looked down, breaking their eye contact. Logan stared at her for a moment longer. Only when he grew aware of it did he look down as well.

"Do you want to dance?" she asked him suddenly, out of the blue, determined and yet a bit timid at the same time.

Surprised by the question, Logan's head shot up to meet her eyes again. Logan had no idea how such a combination was even possible, but he sure couldn't resist it. He couldn't resist her. Or the opportunity to finally be able to take her into his arms, even if it was to hold her only while dancing. Forgetting everything but the girl in front of him, he stood up, sighing at the realization just how powerless he found himself against his Ace's charm. "After you."

She smiled, triumphant, relieved, and turned around to head to the dance floor. Quickly fastening the buttons on his jacket, he followed her, falling into step with her. He glanced at her. It wasn't like his shy Ace to be so forward that she came to him and even asked him to dance. But then, this was also the girl that had pulled a prank about their engagement on him. The girl who had openly teased him with her preference on bikes and left him with no choice than to head for a cold shower. The same girl who had no qualms of spending nearly a thousand dollars of his money on books. The memory of these things made him smile. And now here she was, having talked him into dancing with her, despite his reluctance to dance at such social gatherings, something, usually not even his closest female friends managed to do, and all she had to do was ask once, turning those Bambi eyes on him.

Some tiny part in him, which was still reasonable and thinking straight, screamed to him that this was a bad idea. A very bad idea. That there were so many reasons that this was such a bad idea. But that tiny part had no chance anymore. It was too late for reason. So Logan shut it up and with a smile, he put his arm around his Ace to lead her over to a relatively free spot on the dance floor.

As he stopped to pull her into his arms, he grew aware that the music had turned to something slow, without him noticing it. He sighed. Sure, usually he'd prefer a slow dance with his Ace anytime – but here? Among this crowd with him being already so affected by this beautiful girl in his arms? Who felt so perfect to be in his arms? So right? It wasn't a good idea.

It wasn't a good idea period.

He looked down into her eyes and felt his doubts leave him once again. The room full of people faded and soon the only thing that existed in his world right now was Rory. Faintly, he heard the music, and swayed them softly to the slow tunes of the song he knew from somewhere. But like most things, the title had fled his mind. All he could do was stare into her eyes, so blue, so sparkling, and so enticing that he felt himself falling and falling and falling.

The magic of the moment though was broken when Rory looked down, breaking their eye contact, obviously thinking about something.

He pulled her a bit closer, finding himself wanting to know her thoughts. "What?" he asked softly.

Rory looked back into his eyes and smiled a small smile. "Why did you come?" she asked him, curiously.

Logan smiled. "Open bar," he answered her lightly.

Her smile intensified as Rory nodded knowingly. "Quite a draw for a guy with an American Express black card," she countered dryly.

Still smiling, Logan started to list more reasons in order to tease her. He just loved teasing her. "Live band, salad, butter parts…"

"Logan…" she interrupted him with an eyeroll.

Unfazed, Logan continued. "Little knit bags full of those Jordan almonds…"

"Are you ever going to ask me out?" Rory interrupted him, going totally blunt once again.

That for sure shut him up. He felt his eyes widen a bit as he stared at her, flabbergasted. But for the life of him, he couldn't give her any answer. He was frozen.

When there came no answer from him, Rory continued, looking down. "You flirt with me," she looked up, "You act like you like me a little. You show up here with a friend – not a date. I mean, aren't you? Ever?" she asked, her eyes challenging him.

Logan was still frozen, unable to give her any reaction at all. What the hell was wrong with him? And just what the hell should he do now? This was it. The moment where he could end it. But…

"You do like me, right?" Rory asked, smiling, searching in his eyes for a confirmation.

Finally a reaction! Logan still found himself without words, but at least he could give her a smile. Really, how could she doubt that? He had bought her twenty-five books after all. And gave her one of his own books, hunting Hersh for an autograph, just for her.

Oh, yeah, he liked her. _That_ never had been a problem. In fact, he liked her a lot. Probably too much. And _that_ was the problem.

"Oh… Okay… Uh, no problem."

Logan felt Rory pulling away as her words dawned on him. Her head bowed and she refused to look up at him again. Shit. She must have gotten the wrong impression from his inability to give her an answer. Shit, shit, shit! He opened his mouth to say something, but still, noting would come out. Damn!

"I'll just… um… let you go back to your table," he eyes flew up to him briefly, "and I'll start burrowing directly into the ground." She had looked away again, but now met his eyes again, embarrassed.

She pulled away some more and when Logan felt her slipping out of his arms, he finally came back to his senses, leaving that awful frozen state behind. He tightened his hold, unwilling to let her go. He couldn't let her believe that he wasn't interested in her. It had been his plan, yeah… but that expression in her eyes right now… no, he just couldn't do it. "Rory…" he called out softly and as her name rolled out his tongue he realized with a start that this was actually the first time he ever called her by her name. And it just felt wonderful, right.

She didn't listen though, still too caught up in her embarrassment. "I should be in China by midnight," she joked, bravely holding up a cheerful front.

"Rory," Logan called her again, his voice more firm now as he, with determination, pulled her back into his arms. She wasn't getting away from him. Not now.

Perhaps not ever.

God, it felt so damn good to have her in his arms.

"You called me Rory," she said, her voice filled with wonder, and stared up at him, apparently forgetting everything else for a moment.

Logan sighed. This situation finally needed to be cleared. It just couldn't go on like this, with all that uncertainty between them, all that tension. It was driving him crazy. "I want to be clear," he told her straight out.

"Oh… good," she said, uncertainly, not knowing and fearing what he had to say.

And perhaps for the first time in his life, Logan optioned for telling a girl the simple truth. She sure deserved nothing less. "I have thought about asking you out several times," he assured her, emphasizing his words with a series of small nods, that now went over in a small shake of his head. "I just don't think it's such a good idea," he finished, relieved that the truth was finally out there.

Her nose wrinkled in confusion. "Why not?" she wanted to know, turning big eyes on Logan.

Logan took a deep breath and let it out soundly again. How to explain it to her, to make her see that it wasn't a question of his attraction to her? "Because you're special," he eventually tried to explain it to her.

Apparently it wasn't the right word though as she frowned in bewilderment. "Special? Like 'Stop eating the paste' special?" she asked worriedly.

'No!'

Ugh, this wasn't working! He tried again. "You are beautiful. You are intelligent. You are incredibly interesting," he hurriedly assured her, optioning for the total, unclouded truth. But he just needed her to understand. "You're definitely girlfriend material. I however, " he shook his head, reluctantly, "am definitely not boyfriend material. I can't do it, I can't do commitment and I don't want to pretend to you that I can." He shook his head again. "If I were to date you, there would be no dating. It would be," he stopped, searching for the right words, "_something_ right away. And I'm not that guy," he finished, once again shook his head to emphasize his words.

There. It was out. The whole truth. That he did want her – but it just couldn't be. Couldn't work. He couldn't give her what she wanted and though he did regret that immensely – he couldn't change that fact. He wasn't ready for commitment. To loose his last freedom. He just wasn't. Not even for her, this amazing, wonderful, special girl.

"But I'm not looking for anything something like," Rory tried to assure him.

"Rory," he said in a tone that made clear that he didn't believe her – as if shaking his head and tilting it to the side to look unbelievingly at her wasn't enough indication for that already.

"I'm not," she insisted though. "I've done that. As a matter of fact, I just did that and that's not what I want."

"I'm not saying you want that right now," Logan told her gently, again shaking his head. It may be what she believed now – but she couldn't change what she was. And neither could he.

"_No_, I don't want that at all!" she once again assured him.

Logan gave her a look, begging her to stop kidding herself. This was hard enough already as it was – neither of them really needed Rory to make things even worse. If she didn't stop pressuring him soon, trying to make him believe that it could actually work…

Rory's hand slid down his chest and came to a stop right over his heart. She looked down. "No, I'm not expecting anything," she told him quietly and slowly looked up into his eyes again. "I'm just… I like you," she said softly, shyly, and Logan smiled at her before he could stop himself. Actually, he didn't want to stop himself, he realized that when he felt her fingers playing with the lapel of his jacket, nervously, innocently. It drove him crazy. How was he supposed to think straight, to keep firm, when teased and taunted like that? She looked down again. "And I wanna spend some time with you." She took a deep breath and looked up, straight into his eyes. "No strings attached."

_What?_ Had she just…? Oh yeah, she had.

And Logan could see that she really meant it. In the way she smiled, in the way how firm and certain her voice had been. But… Rory Gilmore in a stringless relationship? "No strings attached, huh?" he slowly repeated, smiling at that concept. He couldn't see it. He wanted to, desperately – but he just couldn't.

But Rory nodded affirmative. "Hey, girls just wanna have fun," she joked, but grew serious again. "Stringless fun," she insistently emphasized.

Staring at her, Logan slowly realized that she really, really was dead serious about it. She was offering him the perfect solution to his dilemma. Offering him a chance at exploring this thing between them further, at giving him what he was dreaming about for months now – with him not finding himself caught up in a relationship with her, with him still being able to just be what he was, not having to change to something he simply wasn't. Yet… his instinct told him that it wasn't going to work. That it just couldn't work. Not with Rory. "You may feel like that now…" he started to say, desperate for her to see the impossibility of this whole scenario. Because he sure wasn't going to be able to resist the temptation, the needs of his body much longer.

Rory just smiled though. "I do feel like that now," she simply confirmed to him.

Damning them both to something he just knew would turn out to be a mistake. He tried a last time to stop this, before it got too late. "Okay, but…" he started to reason, but found himself already smiling. Knowing that there was no going back anymore.

She stopped him by taking his hand into hers and Logan felt the familiar jolt of electricity surging through his body, straight to his heart – and to other parts of his anatomy. For a moment, he was lost in the sensation. When he came back to his senses, at least somewhat, he felt the small hand of his Ace dragging him off the dance floor. "Where are we going?" he asked, flabbergasted. He just didn't know this Rory anymore – not that he disliked this new, surprising side of his Ace. Quite the contrary.

Rory turned to him, a small, secretive smile playing at her lips and he felt as she changed the hand with which she was holding his. She squeezed his hand before she let go and went over to the end of the bar. "How should I know? What do you think, I have a plan or something? Geez…" She grabbed a bottle of champagne that stood on the bar and turned back to Logan. "Live in the moment, Huntzberger," she told him with a smile before heading towards an exit. After a few steps, she stopped and looked back at him, coyly, invitingly – innocently. "Coming?" she asked, and despite her braveness and determination Logan could hear the vulnerability in her voice. The hope.

And in that moment, he realized that he was a goner. She just was too much of an irresistible combination of too many things and Logan felt himself moving after her, lured by this siren in a cashmere suit. Live in the moment… _She_ had the nerve to tell _him_ to live in the moment? Ha! He would make her pay for that one. Quickly, he looked back to the room full of people. This was crazy. Not even faltering in his steps, he turned and followed her with big strides.

In Omnia Paratus.

* * *

Rory led Logan to one of the dressing rooms, not that that surprised him anymore. He was past being surprised. Slowly, Logan entered after her, moving into the room that seemed to have served as some sort of bridal room for Emily earlier on. He had a pretty good idea of what was going to happen in here in a few moments. But he wasn't so sure if Rory was aware of just where this short trip was heading to. And the more he thought about it, the more he couldn't help but think that this was a very bad idea. Despite the fact that his body very much protested at that thought. His body sure knew what it wanted. He sighed.

Behind him, he could hear Rory closing the door and shaking his head, he turned to face her, who approached him with a smile on her face. She looked so sure, so content. How could she be so sure? So content?

"Champagne?" she asked him, holding out the bottle to him.

Thankful for the diversion, he took it with a sigh and took a long swallow, letting the prickling, cool liquid run down his throat. He liked champagne. But right now, it tasted shallow. He wanted to finally taste something entirely different. And at the same time his head kept yelling at him. He handed her the bottle back. "Look," he started to say and watched as she took a sip as well, mesmerized as she swallowed.

Swallowing himself, he attempted to give her an out again. "Look," he started again, meeting her eyes. "You sure you want to do this?" he asked. He needed to hear it again, to know that she really had thought this through very well. To be sure that she was sure. Because he knew without doubt that once they've taken that next step, there was no going back. He was certain that once he had gotten a good taste of his Ace he wouldn't be able to let her go again. It had been like that with her since right from the beginning, so why should this turn out to be different?

Rory looked away and put the bottle on a table beside him, coming a lot closer to Logan in the process, close enough that her scent filled his nostrils, that unique smell that was intriguing him for so long now, slightly covered by the faint trace of some perfume. She stepped right in front of him, with him not letting her out of his eyesight. She looked up at him, and there was a trace of the familiar shyness in her eyes.

"I just…" she started to say, paused briefly though, before continuing, more determined now. "Want to know… what it would be like," she finally finished, her voice soft as her eyes gazed into his for a long moment. Her eyes dropped a little, off his eyes, and suddenly, she took Logan by surprise by leaning up to him, bringing up a hand to his neck to pull him slightly down towards her and already he felt her lips pressing onto his.

His eyes fluttered close but before he could get over his surprise and even start to participate in the kiss, let alone taste the feel of her lips on his, something he had wanted for so long now, she pulled away already, leaving him very unsatisfied with this kiss. This wasn't how he had imagined that their first kiss would be like – feel like. But then, this hardly had been a kiss. A quick peck on the lips perhaps, but not a real kiss. It just… was wrong. He opened his eyes and reluctantly met her eyes – only briefly though, before he tore them away, looking her up and down. He didn't know how to tell her that this… it just hadn't felt right.

"I feel like I'm kissing a guy," he finally told her, giving her a reluctant smile. That perhaps wouldn't hurt her feelings too much.

Apparently it didn't, because at his words, her eyes started to gleam in a slightly wicked way and, rolling her eyes, she leaned up again, an amused smile on her lips, before they once again captured his in another kiss. This time though, it was different right from the beginning. His eyes closing again, he felt himself caught in a fire that her deep kiss evoked in him the second he felt her tongue tenderly ask for permission to enter, a permission he hurriedly granted her. Oh, yeah, _this_ was how he had imagined it would be. How he had fantasized and dreamed about it. _This_ was a real kiss, one of those kisses that just told you how good more would be. He savored the feel of her lips on his, the taste of her that was so sweet, so enticing.

Rory pulled away and looked shyly into his eyes, somehow shaken a bit. She wasn't the only one. He had known it would feel good to kiss her – but he hadn't expected it would feel that good. So… right. Logan gave her a small smile and breathed in deeply, her scent that was so much stronger now. Probably imprinted into his memory forever.

"And apparently I had no idea what I was missing," he told her, aware of the wonder in his voice, the same wonder he could see in her eyes, and not caring one little bit about that.

All he knew was that he wanted more. And more. And more.

Logan reached for her, taking her face into both of his hands and drew her to him. Not that she resisted. In fact, she seemed as eager for more as he was. His eyes closed as their lips touched again. This time, there was no savoring of the sensation – this time, there was just fire, fire that grew in intensity, the more of her he tasted, the more their tongues danced with each other. He slightly changed the angle, to deepen their kiss even more, one of his hands sliding to the back of her head, burying into her soft hair, so wonderfully soft and silken, just like he thought it would feel like. His other hand slowly stroked down her throat, down her collar bone, over the swell of her breast and though he desperately wanted to explore that particular part of her body a lot more, he saved that for later and was content with letting his hand slide deeper, circling her small waist. He drew her into his body, pressing her to him as much as it was possibly while still being fully dressed, letting her feel once and for all just what an effect she had on him, how much their kiss was exciting him. Logan halfway expected her to pull back then, this was his shy Ace after all. But once again she surprised him by doing something so forward, leaning even more into his body, her hips slightly grinding against his erection as she moaned against his lips.

In that moment, he lost every sense of time or place, every last trace of reason leaving him. There were just sensations and feelings only. And want, so much want. He needed more, a lot more. And he desperately needed to touch her skin. Never breaking the lock their lips were in, he pulled away slightly, just enough for his fingers to move between them where he hastily unfastened the buttons of her jacket. Realizing what he wanted, Rory helped him shrug off her jacket and blindly, he threw it away. There were a lot more clothes to get rid off, but he first needed to feel her against his body again, so he slipped both his hands around her waist again to press her against him. He deepened their kiss, feeling himself already falling addicted to that taste of her, that taste that was sweeter and more alluring than nectar, the drink of the gods, or ambrosia, the food of the deities. She lifted her arms and laid them over his head, giving him the opportunity to move his tongue even deeper into her mouth where she welcomed him happily. But the more he got from her, the more he wanted.

And there was definitely still way too much layers of clothing between them for his taste.

She seemed to think like him, because he felt her pulling away slightly, so her hands could loosen around his neck and slide down his chest, coming to a halt when she reached the first button. She unfastened them and quickly moved to the next and the next until she had undid them all. Her hands slid up again, grabbing the lapel of his jacket and she pulled it over his shoulders, down his arms, stepping closer to him again. What she did next though took him kind of off guard. His Ace, the shy girl who he had actually pegged as a virgin there for a while moved her hands, as soon as his jacket was rid off, to the waistline of his pants and started to pull out his shirt. She did it slowly, pushing Logan to the point where he was precariously about to loose even the last bit of control he still had over himself. Finally, she had his shirt out though and her hands lost no time to move under it. Her hands touched his bare skin over his hips and that last control he had snapped, leaving him in a world that only consisted of the girl in his arms and the overwhelming need to be as close to her as possible. He felt her hands stroke his back, leaving a trail of burning skin. And his skin wasn't the only thing that burnt. It felt as if his entire body burnt and was being engulfed in red hot flames, flames he welcomed with open arms.

Growing dimly aware of the tightness around his neck, he realized that his tie was still in place and way too tight right now. Hers was in place as well for that matter. He wanted to get rid of them, but that would mean that they had to break their kiss. Then again, a little bit of fresh air couldn't hurt his burning lungs either. Reluctantly, he lightened up the kiss, bringing his arms to her front, going for her tie, so she would know just why he was starting to pull away slightly from her and break up their kiss. Their lips parted and for a moment, the loss of that first connection of them was almost literally hurting him, so he quickly showered her with a series of small kisses, first onto her mouth, then, loosing himself once again in her, over her cheek, and finally down the side of her neck until he reached the soft spot between her collar bone and her neck, right over her pulse that beat strong and fast against his tongue as he tasted the soft, delicate skin of hers. On his back, he felt her hands reaching higher, bringing up his shirt a little and it made him wild with need.

"Rory," he groaned against her neck, his voice deep and rough, barely recognizable even for him.

This was insane. This unspeakable need for her. This insatiable hunger for her. This ravenous want for her.

It should scare him, this intensity that he couldn't remember to ever having experienced in his life before so far, not while he was just kissing some girl, not even quite at first base yet - but God, it felt so damn good. He could just ride with it and somehow, that was just perfectly fine with him.

What wasn't fine with him was the tightness that surrounded him. His tie was too tight, his shirt was too tight and God, his pants were definitely way too tight. Desperate to finally get rid of some more clothes, he fingered at the knot of her loose tie, with no success though. Frustrated, he angrily forced himself to pull away, for his lips to leave the luscious body in his arms and, to make things quick, simply removed her silver tie by pulling it over her head. As soon as it was gone, she slipped her hands from under his shirt and reached for his tie as well, trying to unfasten it. But Logan knew that this would be taking too much time, so he reached up and tore at it until the knot loosened and slid down enough for him to pull it simply over his head as well. Not wasting another precious second, he reached for Rory, once again cupping her cheek with one of his hands while his other headed straight to the hemline of her blouse, slipping under it to finally, finally touch the silken skin beneath. With a relieved sigh, he drew her in for another kiss, impatient to lock himself together with her again, as his hand tried to feel more of her. He found himself hindered to do that though, her blouse cut too tight to leave him much space to roam her body. Frustrated, he pulled the hand from under it again, causing her to whimper against his lips in protest. Her whimpers though faded when she felt him starting to unbutton her blouse. Catching up on his plan, her hands slid over from his shoulders to his neck and he too felt the first of his buttons open, quickly followed by the next. She was moving faster than he, but then, it was hard to concentrate on such a simple task as opening a button right now.

Actually, he was starting to believe that the best thing would be to just rip that damn blouse open.

Rory moved closer again, her fingertips brushing against the bare skin of his chest. It was driving him crazy. If they didn't manage to get rid of their clothes soon and finally give him the chance to bury himself deep into her…

At that moment, the door to the room swung open and none other than Rory's mother burst into the room, stopping dead in her tracks when she beheld the sight of her daughter being groped by him.

Coming back to the here and now with a rush, Rory and Logan pulled away, turning startled towards the intruder. Breathing deeply, Logan stared at the disapproval on the older Gilmore's face and tried to come out of the haze he still was in. It started to dawn on him just what they had been doing – and where – and when.

God…

How the hell could he have let himself get so lost in the moment while being at the Windsor Club with her entire family right in the next room? Not to mention his own parents who should be present by now as well. But the moment their lips had touched into that rapturous kiss… he lost every sense of time and place. The problem was that he wasn't some lovesick teenager anymore. This shouldn't have happened! And it sure shouldn't have happened that they got caught with him having his hand literally in the pot for Heaven's sake! By her mother! He never had been caught before, not once in his life, not even by his friends or different roommates let alone by any parents!

"Hmm… Grandma wants a picture," Lorelai said dryly, looking at her daughter and ignoring him.

He was just fine with that.

"Of this?" Rory asked shocked and her rather stupid question told Logan just how much she had been lost in their making out as well.

On some deep level, that knowledge made him feel very warm, very pleased, but forefront on his mind was still embarrassment. Not a feeling he was very familiar with. Even less familiar was the shame he felt settling in, the more he grew aware of just how much he had let himself go, lost in a world with just his Ace alone existed. Uncomfortable, he crossed his arms in front of his chest and looked down, biting his lips.

Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck…

"Rory, what are you doing?" Lorelai asked her daughter, disbelief and disappointment clear in her voice, which only made Logan feel more miserable.

He had known this was a bad idea. And by God, he should have had more sense and more control to not think about the stupidity of making out here of all places! He shouldn't have let it get so out of hand. In fact, he shouldn't have let it started in the first place. He glanced at Rory. Well, at least not here, but somewhere where they would have been safe from interruptions – least of all by her mother who now looked so reproachfully at his Ace. Something that didn't sit very well with him actually. But he wasn't so stupid to say anything.

"Mom…" Rory said in a rather small voice, one he didn't like either. Admittedly, what they had done had been stupid – but then again, they weren't kids anymore. His mind flashed to their kisses. Nope, definitely not children anymore.

"You're at your grandparents' wedding! Renewal – avowal – thing. Whatever. They're right out there!" Lorelai interrupted Rory agitatedly. "God, Rory, I swear!"

Rory's face fell at her mom's words and Logan found himself bristling. Okay, perhaps he was so stupid to say something. But he wouldn't let her mother make his Ace feel so bad. Not for this. Not anyone. Before he could say something in Rory's defense though, they all heard a man's voice calling out in the hallway.

"Rory? Rory's in here?"

A moment later, Rory's dad barreled into the room as well, making Logan's heart fall into his gut when he saw the fury blazing out of the man's eyes. Oh shit. It was one thing to be caught red handed by a girl's mother. But by her father? _Not_ good. Not good at all.

To his immense relief, Lorelai immediately interfered. "Okay, don't, Chris, it's all right," she tried to calm down Rory's father.

Rory, having blanched considerably at the sight of her father, turned away from her parents and slightly urged Logan to back away with a gentle push with her shoulder. Not that Logan did need any incentive for that. He was already backtracking on his own.

"What the hell are you doing in here with my daughter?!" her dad yelled, his eyes shooting daggers at him, skinning him alive.

Nervous as hell and not just a bit scarred now, Logan's hands flew up. "I…"

"Get away from her! That is my daughter!" her dad screamed at him, clearly moving fast beyond any last sense of reason and seeing red now. "I will kick your ass! I will kick your ass, you little weasel!" he spat.

Rory had grabbed Logan's arms now to pull him further away from her raging father while Lorelai held back Rory's dad, actually pushing him out of the room. "Get out!"

When Rory's dad disappeared out of his sight, Logan dared to breathe again, staring blindly at the still open door for a moment while his heart raced.

Fuuuuuuck.

He knew now that there was a reason why he had avoided getting into such situations before. It was fucking deadly. He had no doubt whatsoever that if Lorelai hadn't been there to keep Rory's dad back that her dad would have kicked his ass like hell. Actually, he probably would have beaten the shit out of Logan.

That thought made him thrust into action. With a curse he would never have muttered right in front of Rory under normal circumstances, he frantically looked around for his things. Thank God they hadn't proceeded much further yet. He for sure would be dead by now. Rory too was frantically reaching for her things, grabbing first her tie and pulling it back over her head. He spotted his things lying on a couch and quickly moved over to it, coming to stand right beside Rory who was now reaching for her jacket while he fumbled with the open buttons on his shirt, his hands shaking too much to have much success.

Outside, they could hear Rory's parents arguing. Logan cringed when Lorelai accused Rory's dad of being drunk. Great. Just what he needed. A drunken father set on killing him for pawing his little girl. Oh, he was so dead.

And sure enough, Rory's dad seemed to voice his thoughts. "Calm down? There's a guy in there pawing my daughter!" he yelled furiously.

Beside Logan, Rory cringed and looked heavenwards while she fastened the few open buttons on her blouse. He hoped she was praying for his survival. The way he saw it he needed a miracle to get out of there unhurt and with all body parts intact. And the chances of that happening seemed to drop considerably when they heard a third voice chiming in into the argument taking place outside – definitely a male voice.

"What guy? There's a guy in there with Rory?" they heard and a second later, the man that had accompanied Lorelai and whom Logan assumed was her boyfriend, stormed into the room as well.

At the sight of the huge man with murder in his eyes barreling towards him Logan froze right in the middle of slipping his tie back over his head as he watched his death coming nearer, heading straight towards him.

"Hey! Get your hands off her! I mean it! Right now. Hands in the air, I want to see hands in the air!" the boyfriend roared at Logan, stabbing his fingers against him. If looks could kill – Logan would be so dead now. And he had thought Rory's dad was scary! He had been a harmless bunny against this beast.

Finding it hard to breathe, Logan watched Lorelai appear and push the scary bear of a man out of the room as well, firmly closing the door behind him.

She turned towards the embarrassed pair and smiled sarcastically at them. "I think you better use the back way out of here," she suggested sweetly.

Back way? There was a back way? Thank God. Perhaps he really could get out of this alive. Coming out of his frozen shock, Logan quickly pushed the tie the rest of the way over his head and blindly tugged at it to straighten it out. It was stupid, but anything was better than to do nothing – or face the mother of the girl he had just made out with – and who had just saved his life – twice.

"But Dad… Luke…" Rory weakly protested, concerned.

Logan glanced at her, briefly wondering for whom she was concerned, but then let it be and looked back to her mother.

"I will take care of Dad and Luke. Please go. Now! Go!" she told them, using a tone that made Rory immediately follow the order as she turned and headed for the back door. Strangely, Logan felt himself hesitating, though he had no idea why that was so. Until now he had thought he hadn't any death wish. Shaking his head, he grabbed his jacket and turned to follow Rory out, sending a last embarrassed glance into Lorelai's direction. He should have left right away, because suddenly, Lorelai's voice stopped him and made him look warily back at her. "So… um… you must be Logan," she said, her blue eyes, so similar to those of her daughter, piercing him.

"Uh… yeah," he admitted, startled not just a bit by the fact that Rory's mom so easily assumed this. Just what had Rory told her mother about him?

"I'm Lorelai," she introduced herself, rather unnecessarily.

But then, this whole farce was unnecessary.

Clueless how to react in such a situation, Logan fell back on default mode of proper etiquette and good manners school had hammered into his brain. "Nice to meet you," he answered politely with a nod.

Silence fell onto the room, a silence in which they had no problem hearing Rory's dad and Lorelai's boyfriend still arguing over who exactly of them had the bigger right to kill Logan.

Logan cringed and nervously looked longingly towards the back door. "Okay, well, I'd better…" he said weakly and pointed towards the door.

"Yeah," Lorelai dryly agreed with him.

He didn't need a second invitation to leave. Turning away he hurriedly left the room, wanting nothing else than to get far, far away from there – from the two livid men who were determined to kill him.

There was something else to add to the long list of reasons why he should have stayed away from Rory: That girl simply was too much drama.

Definitely.

But fuck, despite of all that that had just happened - he knew it was too late now. Nothing, _nothing,_ could keep him away from his Ace anymore. It was just as he had feared: there was no going back anymore, now that he had a taste of her.

Now that he knew just how good it felt to kiss her.

And he wanted more.

* * *

TBC!

_(Author's Note: Okay, here it is finally, the long awaited version of mine of Wedding Bell Blues. Sorry it took so long, but first I have an exam this Saturday and needed to work for that and second and most of all: this was a pretty hard chapter to write. Especially because I know just how many of you were looking forward to this. I doubt I could fulfill all the great expectations. But I do hope that I at least didn't disappoint with this version of mine. Only 53 pages… but to be frank, originally I planned to submerge this episode and the next one together into this one chapter. I changed my mind, seeing that I'm already at 52 pages. Hoped you enjoyed them! Once again, thanks for the wonderful reviews! It's them that keep me going and whenever I think okay, I'm crazy, and I probably will never finish this baby, because I'm stuck a little, there comes a wonderful comment and already I'm inspired to write again, spurred on by your confidence – and impatience. Thank you all for that! And please, don't stop, ever! Okay… enough of my ramblings now. Knowing you all, I better start with the next chapter now, one I'm looking forward to very much!)_


	9. Hanging out

**Chapter 9: Hanging Out**

**(Say Something)**

"Logan…"

Logan looked up to see Rory waiting for him in the hallway outside the room, her face still beet red, her eyes worried though. Somehow, he wasn't surprised that she had waited for him.

"I'm so sorry. Dad and Luke… and Mom! They shouldn't have… it's just…" Rory quickly apologized.

"Rory, darling!" A voice called out. "The picture-taking, honey! Hurry up!"

Impatiently, Rory waved at the redheaded woman functioning as a sort of wedding planner who was calling her. Her eyes stayed on Logan though. "I should go. I just wanted to know… I mean… are… are we okay?" she asked hesitantly, cringing a little.

Normally, Logan would have smiled at that cute scene. Now though he just wanted to leave, as fast as possible with hopefully no one seeing his state of undress. And get far, far away from the men out for his blood. Staying alive was pretty high on his priorities after all. His eyes darted nervously into the direction from where he could still distinctly hear them arguing. Oh, yeah, the faster he got out of here, the better.

"Rory!" The old redhead called out again, more urgently now.

Logan shook his head and stood back into the shadows of a column. "Ace, go. It's okay. But I really need to get out of here now."

Rory nodded. "Okay sure, but…"

"Rory," the woman called again, heading towards them now.

Oh, he was so not letting that woman see him the way he was dressed right now. Panicked, he looked around. There. Back Door. Perfect.

"Bye, Ace," he said hastily and, not waiting for a response since that woman was getting closer, he slipped out the back door and raced to his car. A minute later his tires screeched as he sped out of the parking lot of the Windsor Club, his heart beating fast.

He simply couldn't believe what had happened. Had he really just been caught making out with a girl by her mother, her father and the boyfriend of her mother? At the Windsor Club? With her entire family in the next room, along with a ton of other big names of high society gathered there as well? Like his own parents? Groaning, Logan shook his head. How the hell could he have been so incredibly stupid? If Rory's grandparents would have caught them… or his own parents… or worse, if the society reporter who undoubtedly was there somewhere could have caught them…

At that thought Logan broke out into a cold sweat.

Jesus.

And when had he become so incredibly stupid in the first place, why for Heaven's sake hadn't he locked the door? Wasn't this the first rule whenever you sneaked away to make out? Lock the door!

Right. But then, he hadn't been the last one at the door. Rory had closed the door. _She_ should have thought of locking that door. But of course she hadn't. Not that it surprised Logan much. Rory had done many things that had surprised him today, but not that. No matter how forceful she had been today, he doubted strongly that Rory had ever sneaked away for a make out session before. Not on such a gathering, if at all. So why would she know how essential it was to never forget to lock the door?

Especially for the poor devil that got caught with his hand right in the pot – or rather said on the pot.

His mind flashed back to the silken, soft flesh he had found under her blouse and felt fire race through his veins once again.

A loud honk brought him out of his reminiscing with a start and his eyes focused back onto the street -and the car that was heading towards him. Cursing, he steered the car back to the right side of the street, taking a couple of deep breaths. His heart in his stomach and his pulse racing and throbbing in his throat and his temples, Logan pulled to the side of the road and turned off the engine. Groaning, he buried his head into his arms, resting on the wheel.

Fuck, fuck, fuck…

Sooner or later, that girl would be the death of him.

For a moment he could feel her lips on his again, so soft, so hot, giving him that searing kiss that had threatened to burn him alive.

But God, what a great death she'd give him.

At that thought, Logan let out a sound between a laugh and a groan and shook his head. Why had everything with that girl had to be so different? So – complicated? Why couldn't it just be simple? He meets her, asks her out, kisses her, sleeps with her, has fun with her and then would move on. Just like he had done countless times before. Just like he preferred it.

Not this whole uncertainty bullshit with dancing around the pot for ages. With no remorse and shame tainting the good things. Being able to meet her without everything turning out into one big soap opera. No interruptions, not from her roommate and her roommate's boyfriend and definitely not from her mom, dad and would be dad.

He sighed.

But also without this unexplainable feeling of elation and anticipation whenever Rory was near him. This something between them that made the air sizzling around them had sent bolts through his body whenever they touched. The discovery that a girl could be as much fun as his friends, if not more. Finding out that a girl actually liked him for just being himself and not being the Huntzberger heir and therefore having endless money at hand. That it was possible to talk about God and the world and it would never get boring. To find someone who somehow just knew what to say to make him go crazy with want – or simply make him feel better when he was in a bad mood. To learn that he really _was_ good at what he was supposed to be good at since he could think.

Slowly, Logan lifted his head to lean back in his seat, his eyes still closed.

Rory…

Was she really serious? Could she really go through with this no strings deal? Logan doubted it. And what was worse, after what had happened to him in that dressing room, what Rory had made him feel with only a few kisses – he wasn't sure if _he_ could go through with it.

This thought made his eyes snap open.

Had he really just considered what he thought he had just considered?

Him? With strings?

Even the thought of it was ridiculous.

But then…

Fuck.

Those kisses…

Her hands roaming over his bare back, stroking his chest…

That silken skin of hers, so soft, so warm – and tasting so damn good…

This whole essence of her, engulfing him, capturing him, burning him…

Shaking his head again, Logan glared down at his lap where the evidence of what the mere memory of that short encounter of wild passion did to him was more than just a bit evident.

Why, damn it? Why her? How could she make him go so crazy with want?

Heaven knew he had had a lot of girls in his life. Far too many than he had ever bothered to keep count of. There were probably hundreds of times where he had sex over the years – and even more kisses. Finn hadn't exaggerated when he had said that there hadn't gone a week by in which he hadn't had at least sex once and that's pretty much since his first time. How was it possible that not once, not one single time in all these years, at all those times, had he felt a passion and need, fervor, like he had just felt while being with Rory? Was still feeling actually.

What was it with that girl who attracted him so much to her like a moth to a flame? Make him forget everything, and really everything, but her? Why could she get to him like no one else could? What is it about her that made him do things he had never done before? Made him feel things he had never felt before? Think things he never had thought before? Yearn for things he had never dreamed of before?

And what on Earth had happened today? Hadn't he gone to that stupid wedding thing solely with the purpose of ending things with Rory? That had been the plan. And now? One soulful look from those Bambi eyes and he had forgotten more or less everything. No. That wasn't entirely true. He had just stopped to care about all the many reasons why he and Rory together was a very bad idea. It was one of the things her nearness did to him. Sometimes he loved that about her. And sometimes…

Which would bring him to his original question: _Why?_

Why, why, why?

Logan didn't know why. He didn't know any of the answers to all those questions. And truth be told, he didn't want to think too much about the reason why Lorelai Leigh Gilmore was so different than any other girl, any person he had ever met.

What he _did_ know was that it didn't matter anyway. It didn't matter that Rory was different. It didn't matter that his Ace was complicated. It didn't matter that they weren't dating, even with the no strings deal. There would have been consequences as soon as word got out that a Huntzberger and a Gilmore were dating, consequences he so far had avoided like hell. And it didn't even matter that her parents and protector had nearly killed him today – and for sure would go through with it if he'd ever dare hurt Rory, not that he planned to ever do so. It didn't matter that this girl was way too much drama for his liking.

Because nothing, absolutely nothing, could stop him now from pursuing, from continuing what they had been so rudely and dramatically interrupted.

He had already known it when she had led him away from the dance floor. And he had been right.

There was no going back anymore. Not now when he had tasted her. Not after those kisses. Not after the fire she was able to inflame with her gentle, light touches on his skin. Not after he got that taste of pure, wild passion.

He needed to find out what more was there. Needed to find out if it was just a once in a lifetime experience or if being with his Ace would always feel so damn good. He needed to sink deeply into her, drown in her.

He needed to be with her.

The intensity of his need scared him. More than anything else. But it didn't change anything.

Soon, he would take Rory Gilmore to bed.

And find out if his worst fears would come true.

That he was falling for his Ace.

The rest of the drive was thankfully uneventful. But then, this time he had spent time to calm down enough to be able to keep his mind on the road. More or less. Of course his thoughts were still also focused around his Ace. Like they always were. And now with them having kissed and having made out together… Logan doubted that this would change anytime soon.

He was just pulling into his parking space when his cell phone rang with the tunes of the 'Godfather'. Great. His father. Just what he needed now. But after leaving the party so abruptly and ditching his father's calls all week Logan knew better than not take the call this time. He just hoped to God that his father hadn't learned of Logan's little escapade in the dressing room of the Windsor Club. Or there would probably be hell to pay for him.

"Yeah," he answered the phone.

"Where are you?" his father asked in a clipped voice.

"Back at Yale, Dad," Logan answered and turned off the engine of his Porsche.

"And what, may I ask, are you doing there? You're supposed to be at the Gilmores' wedding – whatever," his father demanded to know impatiently.

With a sigh, Logan let his head fall back on his headrest. "I was there, Dad. I saw the ceremony. Talked with the family. Ate and drank. This is more than can be said about you and Mom. And yeah, I left early as I have yet a few things to do here at Yale," he answered rather patiently.

Somehow, he felt too drained to get into an argument with his father. He really had more important things to think about right now. Like what the hell he was supposed to do with his Ace now.

"I wanted to talk to you, you knew that," his father interrupted his thoughts.

Logan frowned. "And you could have if you'd been there on time. I was. I stayed for at least two hours. It's not my fault if you and Mom didn't show up."

"Some people have to work, Logan," his father said and Logan could almost see the frown in his voice.

Since when did a quickie with his latest secretary qualify as work? But wisely, Logan didn't voice that thought. "Yeah, actually they do. We have exams in a few weeks, Dad. Believe it or not, but I have to study and to work on some of the papers I'm supposed to hand in."

"Sure, and I should believe that my son, party king par excellence, went back to school on a Saturday to go study," his father remarked, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Logan shrugged. He didn't really care what his father thought or believed. After all, Mitchum Huntzberger had never thought very highly about his son. It was something Logan had accepted a very long time ago. "You wanted to talk? Talk," he simply said, wanting to get this tiresome conversation over with.

For a moment, it was silent at the other end of the line. "Fine. Our plane leaves at seven pm. Be at the airport at six thirty. And Logan, for once in your life, don't be late," his father finally told him.

Frowning, Logan stared at the phone. What the hell was his father talking about?

"I've already spoken to your Department Dean. You're cleared for the week. Your professors will let you know what you've missed and I'm sure at least some of your classmates actually go to their classes and can lend you their notes afterwards," his father continued.

"Dad, what on Earth…" Logan started to say but then his eyes widened. Oh shit. The annual business trip. How could he have forgotten that trip? Since high school, Logan had to accompany his father once a year on one of his rounds through the various branches of the Huntzberger Media Corporation. To get his face known. To meet the important persons working for the firm and for them to get used to him as the heir who will take over in a few years. It was boring and long. And there was no way that he could get out of it. Fuck. "Where's the first destination?" Logan asked, resigned.

"London. So don't forget your passport," his father informed him. There was a slight pause before his father sighed. "Your mother's calling me. Six thirty on Monday, Logan. Not a minute too late."

Before Logan could answer, the line went dead. Groaning, Logan shut his phone down and threw it on the passenger seat. Closing his eyes, he banged his head against his headrest. Damn it, this day got worse and worse. First, having to go to this stupid wedding thing, planning to dump Rory. And then, Rory's father and sort of father trying to kill him – not to mention having to face Rory's mother while being halfway undressed. And now the realization that for the next week, he was damned to attend stupid meetings, listen to boring numbers, projections and reports for endless hours and worst of all: he'd have to spend almost a week with his father dearest.

Ugh.

And on top of it all, he and Rory had been rudely interrupted. It may not have been his smartest move ever to make out with his Ace in that dressing room – but it didn't mean that he appreciated that they did get interrupted. It was frustrating, this state of incompleteness.

Yet, after having cooled down a bit and been able to put some distance between him and Rory and what had happened - there was also undeniably a tiny part of him that was glad that they did get interrupted when they were interrupted. Because he knew without doubt that otherwise, he wouldn't have stopped. Hell, five minutes more and Logan was pretty sure that he wouldn't have been able to stop at all and would have had ten mothers and fathers burst into the room.

But… if he was totally honest, then Logan had to admit that he was glad about the interruption because somehow, it wouldn't have felt right. Well, kissing Rory, that had felt definitely right. And, having sex with her. They sure had been headed there and that would have felt so damn right as well. Somehow though… to have it happen there, like that… it felt wrong. When they do it, and do they would, it should be somewhere safe, somewhere nice, with a bed, after a wonderful evening, with music and candles and champagne.

It should be special.

And this was only another thought that confused and scared Logan. So far he had never felt the need to make sex with a girl special. All he had ever cared about so far was that it was good and consensual. And that the girl knew without doubt that him taking her out for a date and having sex with her meant in no way that he was interested in any kind of relationship. They were young and having fun and that was it. He didn't care if a first time was in his or her bed, in a dressing room or if it was just a quick fuck against the wall in a small room or a public restroom or something like that. It wasn't important for him where, when or how.

With Rory, it was different though. He cared about it. It was important. She deserved more than a quickie somewhere. And if it was as good as Logan thought it would be… then he wanted it to happen somewhere where they were comfortable and could do it again and again. Her room. His room. A hotel room even, though somehow, he wanted it cozier than in an impersonal hotel room. Certainly not a dressing room with hundreds of people in the next room.

These thoughts disturbed Logan – and excited him at the same time. With another sigh, he let his head rest against his car seat. He needed time to sort this out. To let things cool down a bit. Especially with those two angry men out for his blood. And he needed some distance from Rory. Because though he knew that he definitely wanted to continue where they had been interrupted – he needed to process this new development a bit.

And then… he was worried that what had happened had changed Rory's mind about their little arrangement. Sure, she had seemed to be truly sorry about the interruption and acted as if she still wanted them to explore what was between them. But that had been immediately after it had happened. Perhaps, by now, she had thought about it and came to the conclusion that what had happened was a sign that they shouldn't have done what they did. Or that she couldn't take the no strings deal and only had agreed to it because of some temporary insanity. Regardless that it was her who had suggested it. Perhaps, Rory had already enough of him. Thought that he wasn't worth the trouble. Or perhaps her mother had talked her out of it while her father and that other man had forbid her to see him again. She was close to her family, valued their opinion. Perhaps she would listen to their words against him.

God… what was he supposed to do if that really was the case? Could he change her mind again? Would he even have a chance against her family?

Crap. He was going insane here. What the hell was he thinking to consider and reflect on such things?

He opened his eyes and looked at his cell phone. Shouldn't he call her? See if she was okay? If she got in trouble for making out with him? To assure her that though what happened had been incredibly embarrassing for him, he was okay with it? Perhaps later. She was probably still at the party and she would hardly be able to talk there. Or he could go by her place this evening. That was if she returned to Yale for the weekend. After the party it was highly possible that she went home. And he definitely didn't want to have to face Gellar and give her any pointers to what was going on between him and Rory. Besides… what if Rory had really changed her mind? He would look like an idiot if he called her now, only to hear from her that she was sorry but she thought it was best if they didn't see each other for a while. At that thought, Logan had to swallow. It wasn't so far fetched after all. Casual dating was so not like her. It would be much more like she thought she must have been crazy to even consider it and decided to put an immediate stop to it. No. It was probably for the best if he waited for Rory to call him. The ball was in her court after all, wasn't it? He wasn't sure. This had never happened to him before so he really didn't know if he was supposed to call Rory or if Rory was supposed to call him.

Anyway, one thing was for sure: With the impending trip there wasn't much he could do right now. This mess with Rory had to wait until after he got back from the trip. If he hadn't heard from Rory until then he'd call her once he was back. Yes. That was what he was going to do. The best he could do actually. It would give them both time to think about what they wanted. If Rory still wanted to continue their no strings/casual dating agreement. If he really couldn't stay away from Rory to save himself from all this drama. Because something told him that he hadn't seen anything yet, should he really get involved even more with his Ace.

He thought back to their kiss and couldn't help but smile. But if the rest was as good as that kiss, then he was pretty sure that he could bear all the drama in the world, because the rewards outweighed the cost by a long haul.

His cell phone rang again, bringing him out of his deep thoughts. Quickly, he reached for it. Perhaps, it was Rory.

It wasn't Rory, but Jewel.

Reading her name on the display, Logan's eyes widened. Fuck. Jewel! He had totally forgotten about Jewel! Damn, damn, damn! He flipped the phone open.

"God Jules, I'm so, so, _so_ sorry!" he immediately started to apologize.

"You better be! Where the hell did you disappear to?" Jewel hissed. Logan cringed. Boy, she was angry. And she had every right to be.

"I'm back at Yale. Really, Jules, I'm so sorry. I totally forgot about you!" he said and realized too late that that probably hadn't been the wisest thing to say.

"Oh thanks, Logan, that makes me feel really special," Jewel answered sarcastically. "You know, I didn't have to go to that boring thing. But I thought, why not? You had to go and I mostly wanted to see you anyway so I thought I'd tag along and later, we could go have some real fun. And now I'm sitting here, bored out of my mind and you have ditched me for some bimbo. God, Huntzberger, I know you have a hard time keeping it in your pants but I thought you could restrain yourself at least for a while to spend some time with me. I thought we are friends!"

Logan rubbed at his temples with his free hand. "We are, Jewel. I… there's no real excuse, I know. But believe me: I didn't ditch you on purpose. It just happened. I had to get out of there, fast, and I just…" he wanted to say 'forget' again but this time, he caught himself in time. "I'm really sorry. If you want, I can turn around right now and come get you."

"No, thanks, I had enough of you for one day. Besides, you'll probably ditch me for another bimbo as soon as your eyes fell on another pair of legs," Jewel answered angrily.

Logan probably deserved that. But shit, he would never have ditched Jewel like that under normal circumstances and Jewel should really know that. "I know you're angry…"

"Damn right I'm angry! And I think I have every right to be angry!" Jewel interrupted him.

"I'm sorry! How many times do you want me to say it? I'm really sorry. But you're a little unfair here, Jules. I've never ditched you before. What happened today… it had nothing to do with you, okay?" Logan tried to explain, admittedly not very successfully.

"Well, things change and apparently also our friendship. I hope she was good at least," Jewel said bitterly.

Logan frowned. "Who are you talking about?" he carefully asked. Had his and Rory's escapade made the rounds? God, he hoped not. He didn't want Rory to have to face all the gossip. He was used to it, but he doubted Rory had yet learned this side of society.

"Don't play coy now, Huntzberger! You think I didn't see you dancing with her? What happened to you're not going to dance there, under any circumstances, by the way? Boy, she must have promised you something to get you out there," Jewel derided. "Sure didn't take you long to sneak away with her. What's the matter, Huntz? You needed it so badly that you couldn't wait another day anymore? Or at least until after the party?"

At her words, Logan felt his anger rise. He knew that Jewel was angry. He could understand that. It was still no excuse though to talk about Rory like that. "Stop it, Landerson, right there," he warned.

"Why should I? I'm not Finn or Colin, Logan. I don't care how many bimbos you screw around with but when we're out together I expect you to be there and not ditch me on the first opportunity, especially not for one of your bed bunnies!" Jewel hissed.

"Rory's not one of my bed bunnies, nor is she in any way a bimbo!" Logan defended her before he could stop himself. "You have no right to talk about her like that. You don't know her. Besides, it isn't what you think."

For a moment, there was silence on the other end of the line. "It isn't?" Jewel asked suspiciously.

"No!" Logan said and took a deep breath.

"Sorry, Logan, but that's hard to believe. You danced with her. You vanished with her. And I know you better than to believe that you two simply went to have a philosophical talk in private or something like that," Jewel said sarcastically.

Logan sighed and shook his head. "Okay, yes, I danced with her. And yeah, I went somewhere private with her where we kissed. And yeah, things got a little out of hand. But… it really isn't what you think it was, okay?"

Again, there was a slight pause before Jewel answered. "Then what was it?"

Logan stared at the school grounds. "I don't know, Jewel, I really don't. But… Ace and I had needed to talk. For a while now. She came to me and asked me to dance, I accepted. We talked. Cleared some things. I didn't intend for anything to happen between us, really not." Quite the contrary actually. Logan shook his head. "It just… did. And you've really got to believe me when I tell you that I had to get out of there as fast as possible."

"Oh, yeah? Why?" Jewel asked and Logan took it as a positive sign that this time there was only curiosity in her voice and no trace of sarcasm.

Now, if Logan wasn't keen on telling one story then it was the one of him getting caught making out. But Jewel deserved the truth – and a good laugh to make up for finding herself being ditched. "Well, Ace and I got perhaps a bit carried away," he slowly started. A bit was one big understatement, but Jewel didn't need to know that.

"Big surprise," Jewel interrupted him sarcastically.

"You want to hear it or not?" Logan snapped, gritting his teeth.

"Okay, okay, go on," Jewel answered him.

"Yeah, well, like I said, we got carried away. And then… well…" Logan sighed. "We got caught, okay?" he admitted, resigned.

"Caught?" Jewel repeated and he could hear that her interest was heightened now. "By whom?"

Logan made a face. "By her mom," he admitted.

"By her mother?" Jewel repeated again, chuckling.

"And her father. And the boyfriend of her mom," Logan admitted the whole truth and sighed. "And let me tell you, they weren't too happy to see me groping their little girl. So I hightailed out of there as fast as I could and believe me, it wasn't one second too soon. I'm sorry that while trying to save my life I forgot about you, but hearing the circumstances you surely understand now why I left the way I did," he hurriedly added.

Once again, there was a long stretch of silence. "Let me get this straight," Jewel eventually said. "You made out with a girl and got interrupted not just by anyone, but by her mother, her dad and the boyfriend of her mother?" she asked, laughing by now. "Seriously?"

"Yeah," Logan grudgingly answered.

"Oh jeez, that's too good to be true! And you're not just telling me this?" Jewel asked.

"No. You can ask them though I'd really appreciate if you wouldn't," Logan told her.

"I'll take your word on it," Jewel chuckled. "God, how I wish I could have seen this! You must have looked incredibly stupid when her entire family burst in on you!" She laughed. Long and hard. "But really, why the hell didn't you lock the door?"

"Hey, Ace closed the door! I'm innocent there," Logan protested. "And Ace… she just…" he sighed. "I don't think she has much experience with sneaking away to make out," he said quietly.

Jewel still laughed. "Apparently not," she remarked dryly. "So… those men hadn't been too happy with you, huh? What did they do? Threaten your life? Punch you? Castrate you?"

Logan winced. "Yelled and threatened, yeah. No bodily harm though," he told her.

"No? I'm surprised. I think even Dad would have tried to punch the guy if he had ever caught me with a boy," Jewel said suspiciously.

Logan sighed. "Her mom held them back," he mumbled in a low voice.

"What was that?" Jewel wanted to know.

"Her mom held them back," Logan grudgingly repeated more clearly.

"Oh, this gets better and better! Logan Huntzberger, carrier of a yellow belt in karate, scared to death by a girl's daddy and step daddy, needed to be saved by same girl's mother! Oh, this is good. Congrats, Huntz, you just made my day, if not my entire weekend," Jewel laughed.

Logan growled. "Glad to be of service, Ma'am," he said sarcastically.

"Come on, it really is too good to be true! And letting yourself a bit teased around is the least you can do to make up for ditching me," Jewel told him amused. "I can't wait to tell Gran and Keith that story, though they probably won't believe it."

"Sure, tell it to the whole world," Logan answered, closing his eyes. Why, oh, why had he been so harebrained to tell Jewel the whole story?

"You bet I will. Perhaps I should hunt down that girl of yours and record her statement so the world will believe me though," Jewel said.

Alarmed, Logan's eyes snapped open. "Leave Ace alone," he warned Jewel. "She's probably in enough trouble already and really doesn't need you to make everything worse."

"Okay, okay, Jeez, calm down, Logan. I was just joking," Jewel told him and was quiet for a moment. "Seriously, Logan, what's going on between you and that girl?"

"What do you mean?" Logan asked apprehensively. He wasn't ready to define him and Rory as something.

"Logan," Jewel sighed. "For one, I think this is the third time that you flipped out on me because of something I said about her. It seems that you're pretty protective about her and that's not so common. You may have said that there's nothing between you two, but first, that girl trailed after you like a lost puppy and when you two danced… The sparks between the two of you could have kept the entire ballroom lit for hours. That you danced with her in the first place is another matter. And then, it really isn't like you to get so carried away to forget the here and now and get yourself caught. Especially not by a girl's parents. And last but not least, you keep calling her Ace. Since when do you nickname girls? I mean sure, you call them honey and baby and all the other common endearments, but a real nickname?"

Logan was quiet. He didn't really have an answer anyway. Nothing, other than that with Rory, it was simply different. So very different.

"Oh. My. God," Jewel gasped. "You like that girl, don't you? You really like her."

Like? Did he like Rory? In the sense that Jewel implied?

"Yeah," he answered quietly, not just giving Jewel an answer, but himself as well. But after today it was pretty clear that he at least liked Rory. Liked her a lot.

"Wow… You actually admit it," Jewel said with awe. "What a day! First, I learn that you actually got caught making out and now even the bigger bomb! That Logan Huntzberger has finally fallen for a girl! Next thing you tell me is that you'll start a relationship with her and turn to be a good little, faithful boyfriend!"

"I'm no boyfriend material," Logan said quietly, frowning a bit.

"Not so far, nope. And that girl of yours better remember that before she gets her heart broken," Jewel agreed, too cheerfully for Logan's taste.

He shook his head and looked down. "She knows," he said, even more quietly.

Jewel didn't respond immediately. "Good for her, I guess… Logan? What's wrong?"

What was wrong? Nothing. Everything. He sighed.

"Logan?"

"You know why I went to that damn wedding in the first place?" Logan asked suddenly, the words breaking out of him. "I wanted to end whatever relationship there was between us. Because I'm not that guy, you know? Me, settling down? Committing to just one girl, even if she's as great as my Ace is? No. That's not who I am. But Ace… she's a one-guy girl. She's not one of those girls who sleep around and go after guys solely for their looks and money. She's perfect girlfriend material. And the idiot that I am realized that way too late. So I wanted to make things right today. I took you along so she'd get the wrong idea. But no, I just had to ruin the plan by letting her talk to me, even had to dance with her. You know what she did? She suggested casual dating. Explore what there is between us but not committing ourselves. And of course I agreed. I wasn't sure I would have been able to let her go anyway and then she came and offered me everything I ever wanted."

"But?" Jewel asked quietly.

"But…" Logan stopped and searched for a way to describe what he was feeling. To name it. He couldn't. "It just doesn't feel as good as it should," he finally said.

"She not as good as you thought she would be?" Jewel asked bluntly.

Logan laughed. "Ace? Jules, Ace always exceeds expectations and believe me, this wasn't any exception." Even the thought that he could be disappointed by her was ridiculous.

"Then what's the problem?" Jewel asked.

"I don't know!" Logan told her impatiently.

Jewel sighed. "Could it be that it doesn't feel right because she's not yours completely? _Because_ there are no strings?"

Logan frowned but said nothing for a long while. "I'm not that guy," he finally repeated, vehemently.

"Up until two minutes ago I would have agreed wholeheartedly," Jewel said slowly. "But now I find it possible that perhaps, you actually may be just that guy."

Logan stared blindly ahead, letting her words sink down. "You're wrong," he eventually weakly protested.

"Maybe," Jewel said softly. "Look, Logan, I don't know the details. And I don't know this girl. But I do know one thing. Living the Casanova thing is fun. And I know why you and the boys prefer to live like that. But just because it sounds so unappealing to settle down and start a relationship with someone, it doesn't mean that it is. Falling in love is a good thing, especially if it's reciprocated. You love adventures and believe me, a relationship can be one hell of an adventure. And perhaps, you should ask yourself why you're so adamant to not get into a relationship when a chance like this one arrives. Is it because you truly believe that you can't do it? Or is it because it is what may please your parents, especially when you chose a girl from high society?"

Logan said nothing. He simply wasn't that guy, was he? It wasn't the latter.

"Because if it's the latter, Logan… then it would mean that Mitchum and Shira and Elias have won. And now, wouldn't that be a tragedy?" Jewel asked, her tone growing more lightly. But Logan could tell that she was still serious.

Again, Logan didn't offer an answer.

"Anyway… I'd strongly advise you to stay away from dressing rooms from now on. And to avoid seeing the two daddies anytime soon," Jewel told him, giggling.

"That's the plan," Logan said dryly. "I hope London's far away enough."

"Mitchum dragging you all the way to London?" Jewel asked.

"Yeah," Logan sighed. "Apparently it's time I get to visit the oversea branches as well. That's at least what he had hinted."

"That's unfair! You going to London right at the time that I won't be there!" Jewel said, disappointed.

"You're not going back to London?" Logan asked, surprised. He had consoled himself that for the first two days he'd have at least Jewel for company.

"No. I've got to fly to Tokyo. Dad opened another branch there and they're throwing a big party, going on the whole week. He ordered Keith to be there for the whole show and he in turn begged me to not leave him alone with them," Jewel sighed. "And after everything that happened with Vince and Granny I thought it's perhaps for the best if I'm there to keep him sane. So I'm hopping on a plane for Tokyo tomorrow."

"Too bad," Logan said with a sigh. "But you're right: it's probably for the best if you're there as well. What now? Do you want me to come get you? Or we could meet somewhere," he offered. Truth was that what he really wanted to do now was get back to his dorm and crash down a little. Beside, if he had to go on that stupid trip he really needed to get in some work before he had to leave. But he had barely seen Jewel. And he really felt bad leaving her stranded back at the party.

"Nah, it's all right. That guy from the bar I went to ask for a dance? He's really nice and he suggested prolonging our meeting a bit," Jewel told him sheepishly.

Logan laughed. "That's rich, Landerson. Here I am, crushed by guilt for leaving you back there all alone, and bearing my soul to make you forgive me, and there you are, hooking up with some random guy. And you had the nerve to chastise me?"

"The difference, Huntzberger, is that I would have regretfully said no to the guy and would have faithfully stuck with you. But seeing as you already ditched me, I can now accept the guy's invitation without having a guilty conscience about it," Jewel corrected him.

"Okay, okay, I yield. I'll go to my room and think about what I have done while you go have fun," Logan answered with a smile.

"You do that," Jewel agreed. "I'll call you to let you know how things are in Tokyo. I'll try to schedule it for one of the many boring meetings ahead of you."

"Please, do that," Logan told her. "And Jules? Say hello to Keith for me, will you? Don't worry too much. Keith will get a grip on himself again. He probably just needs a little time."

"I hope so. And you keep me informed on what's going on with you and _Ace_," Jewel said with a last laugh and hang up before Logan had a chance to give her a comeback to that last comment.

Shaking his head, he closed his phone and gazed outside.

Ace…

He sighed. If he'd just know what to do with that girl.

* * *

"Uff."

With a grunt, Logan pushed the couch backwards until it was resting under the window. He straightened, and wiped the sweat off his forehead and looked around the common room of his suite. Okay. He had rearranged his furniture. Now he just needed to set up everything for the poker party that evening.

There was a knock on the door and Logan quickly checked the time. It was yet too early for the guys to deliver the table and the extra chairs. With a frown, he turned to head towards the door but at that moment it opened and Colin walked in.

"Ugh, you won't believe what a weekend I had so far!" Colin declared and headed straight over to Logan's liquor cabinet. "So I went home, see what my dad had to tell me that was oh so important." He pulled out the scotch.

"And? Another divorce?" Logan asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, though that wasn't the big news," Colin said, filling a large glass for himself.

"No? What then?" Logan asked curiously, picking up magazines and old newspapers to put away.

"He found his new secretary very appealing. Though that's nothing unusual, it looks as if he was so stupid to get the bimbo pregnant," Colin told him and took one large gulp, nearly emptying the glass.

Logan paused and stared at him. "Seriously?"

Colin nodded. "That's what the bimbo proclaims. Of course Dad would want her to be examined by Dr. Henson. Not to mention that he'll insist on a paternity test. But it could be very well that in about seven months, I'll have a sibling," he said, making a face, and gulped down the rest of his scotch before he turned to serve himself again.

"Wow," Logan commented and looked closer at Colin to see how his best friend took the news. It wasn't a secret that Colin had always been more than content by being an only child. Back when he was little, it had always been his biggest fear that one of his new 'mommies' would get pregnant.

"Yeah, wow," Colin said with a sigh and moved over to the couch to sit down. "Hence, the divorce."

Logan nodded. "But then, this marriage would have been over soon anyway," he said dryly.

Colin grinned a little. "I'd have given her two more months at the most."

"When will you know something definitive?" Logan asked after a moment, finally putting the pile of papers and magazines away, sorting out a few he wanted to keep.

Colin shrugged. "Two, three weeks, maybe longer. She refuses the test of course."

"Maybe that's a good sign," Logan tried to console him.

"Hopefully," Colin muttered darkly.

"How'd you react?" Logan asked curiously.

"How do you think? At first I was speechless, then I started yelling about how stupid he had been," Colin cringed. "And I think I told him that if he wants to screw around he should finally go get himself fixed."

Logan grinned. "You said that? To your father?" he asked, unbelieving.

"I was angry!" Colin defended himself.

"How many accounts did he close?" Logan asked. He couldn't imagine Andrew McCrae simply accepting his son's criticism without issuing any penalty for such an insult.

Glancing at Logan, Colin quickly looked away. "I have no idea. I stormed out of there before he could stop sputtering."

"No shit?" Logan asked, surprised. Colin almost never went against his father, not in a direct approach. He seldom contradicted his father and he even rarely got into a real fight with him.

Colin stared into his glass. "I'm so sick of always being under his rein. I've never said anything, not about his many flings, not about his many marriages and divorces. They laugh about his harem of ex's but if he wants to look like an old fool, fine by me. But this… He has gone too far now. He's harassing me because of the many girls I have dated and preaches every time when we see each other that if I'm not going to mend my ways soon I'm going to taint the family's name and most probably will end up with a bastard and then he… Ugh." Colin shook his head.

Frowning, Logan went to pour himself a scotch as well before he walked over to Colin and sat down beside him. Whining about his family and social status usually was Logan's specialty. If Finn had parental stress, he usually went and did something real crazy for him – after he went to get real blasted. And at some rare times, he'd stay sober and be serious. Colin though… he usually never admitted that he had stress and Logan and Finn would have to try for days to get him to talk, usually getting him really drunk before he would open up at all. That Colin spoke so freely was a first. And Logan wasn't quite sure what to do with this new situation. He wished Finn was there. The Australian was much better at dealing with the emotional baggage than him.

"If you ask me, it was high time that someone finally told the old fart that," Logan finally offered. "And who knows, perhaps, coming from you, he'll actually think about it and will even listen to your – advise."

Colin laughed bitterly. "Yeah, sure. And the Pope's pro-abortion."

"You never know. Sometime…" Logan said and glanced at Colin. It was obvious that he was still pretty down. No wonder. If he was honest then Logan wouldn't take it too well either if his father told him that he got one of his fucks pregnant. But then, his father had himself fixed years ago.

He sighed. There was some serious cheering up needed here. Unfortunately, Logan knew just the story that would probably do the trick. And he had so hoped he could avoid telling Colin and Finn this. "Yesterday at the Gilmore wedding I made out with Ace in a dressing room at the Windsor Club."

"What?" Colin's head jerked up to stare wide eyed at him. "You did what?"

Logan nodded. "Ace came to me and asked me to dance. There she suggested that we have a little stringless fun. And then she led me away to that dressing room."

"She did _what_?" Colin skeptically asked. "Rory? Rory Gilmore? _Our_ Rory?"

Again, Logan nodded. "The one and only. So we kissed. And believe me, that was one hell of a kiss. So we got lost in it a little. And I had just managed to get my hand under her blouse when the door opened and none other than Lorelai Gilmore the Second burst into the room in search of her daughter. She was mighty surprised to find her with a boy who was just about to do some really dirty things to her daughter and I can't say that she was too pleased about those circumstances."

Colin just stared at him, his eyes as big as saucers. "Rory's mother walked in on you two?"

"Perhaps a minute later, none other than Rory's dad walks in after Rory's mom, having had one drink too many might I add, and went into full-raging-father-mode upon finding his little girl and a guy with disheveled and half-unbuttoned clothes in a secluded room," Logan continued.

"Rory's dad?" Colin asked ghastly.

"Yep," Logan nodded. "But wait, it's getting even better. Rory's mom just managed to drag the furious daddy out into the hall before he could make true on his threats to kill me when suddenly this huge bear of a man barrels in and comes towards me, with murder in his eyes. Turns out it's Rory's would-be father and protector and current boyfriend of the mom."

"No shit?" Colin asked after he found back his speech – which was a while.

"Honest to God's truth," Logan confirmed.

A grin started to tug at the corner of Colin's lips. "Let me get this straight. You and Rory finally acted on your feelings and got together - about time by the way. Only to get your little tête-à-tête interrupted by Rory's mom, dad and step-father?" When Logan nodded, cringing, Colin burst out laughing. "Oh God, what would I have given to see this! Tell me that someone managed to film this and I'm the happiest man alive."

"I'm glad that my almost death amuses you so much," Logan replied dryly and got up to continue getting his suite ready for the big night.

"It's a fucking miracle you're still alive. I can only imagine how red those guys must have been finding you pawing their little girl," Colin snickered.

"Only thanks to Lorelai," Logan admitted with a sigh. He'd never live this down. _Never._ Especially not as soon as Finn got wind of this – which was only a question of time, now that Colin knew. He sighed again. 'The things you do for friendship', he thought grudgingly.

"And that's the best of it all. You having to hide behind a tiny, little woman to save your life. God Logan, thanks! That's just what I needed!" Colin laughed.

"I didn't hide behind her. Nor is she in any way tiny or little. Try big and scary and you'd have it right," Logan protested and pushed a big chair out of the way.

"Yeah, sure," Colin retorted sarcastically.

"You know, instead of making stupid jokes you could actually help me," Logan told him darkly.

"I can't wait for Finn to hear this! You've got to make sure that I'm there to witness the show! Actually, let me tell him, do you mind? I promise I'll let you look only a little bit like a wimp. And just like an idiot, not like a horny teenager with no control whatsoever over his hormones," Colin exclaimed, laughing harder.

Disgusted, Logan shook his head. "I must have been brain dead to tell you this."

* * *

By the time the delivery guys arrived with the poker table and the card dealer in tow half an hour later, Colin's laughter had died down to an occasional chuckle. Once the first guests arrived an hour later, Colin had gone from perhaps ten comments in a minute to merely one or two.

One thing was for sure. That was the last time that Logan would willingly offer an embarrassing story to console a friend. Never, ever again. Especially not to Colin. But at least it had worked. Colin's spirits were definitely lifted and he was his usual cheerful self. Unfortunately.

There was a knock and Logan went to open it – and groaned inwardly, once he recognized the new arrival.

"You ready to lose again?" Robert asked, grinning at him.

Logan gave him a false smile. "The question is rather if you can afford to lose to me."

Why again had he invited Robert?

"You suck at poker. I think my nine grand is safe. By the time we're finished it will probably be twenty grand," Robert said unfazed and brushed past Logan.

Right. To get his money back. And to hopefully see Robert losing a lot of money. Preferably to Logan. Though Logan knew that the chances for that weren't too good – he really wasn't exactly a poker ace.

Ace…

Logan groaned. Great. He just had to think about something where 'ace' was in and already his thoughts were back at his Ace, remembering her face after their first kiss. Well, technically the second but then, Logan didn't define that first peck on the lips as a kiss. Her eyes had shone so much and that smile…

No!

Scowling, Logan closed the door and went over to the bar to pour himself another drink. So far, he had more or less managed to avoid thinking about his Ace. As soon as he had been back in his room, Logan had pulled out his books and had started to work on one of the papers that were due in a few weeks. By the time his eyes got droopy with sleep, Logan had finished one paper, had written a draft on another article and had started to gather his notes for another paper. He couldn't remember when had been the last time that he had stayed home on a Saturday evening to work for school. But it sure had helped to push Ace and their encounter to the back of his mind. That was more than he could say for the night. Oh, he had fallen asleep almost the second he had laid down – the day's events and all that work had been pretty exhausting. But of course he had to dream. And of course his Ace had been the star of his dreams. And of course every single dream had been more than just a little x-rated. Alone thinking about them… and he couldn't even remember details! Only a scene here or there, flicker of images.

Desperately trying to not close his eyes, Logan quickly gulped down a large portion of his drink. Fuck. He needed to do something finally. Or more specifically, he and Rory had to finally get rid of this damn sexual tension between them. This couldn't go on like this. Logan wasn't keen on waking up painfully hard every morning for the rest of his life. Or to have a freezing cold shower several times a day. And though he hated to admit it, he was pretty sure that there wouldn't be an end to all of that until he finally took Rory to bed and had it out. He doubted that any other girl would be able to still his hunger and satisfy this overwhelming need.

Rory had inflamed it and only Rory could douse it off.

A hand ran over his back and Logan tensed. Irritated, he looked up. A brunette was standing beside him, smiling seductively at him.

"Hey there handsome. I heard you could use a lucky charm for the game tonight," she breathed and moved closer, her hand running to his front. "I'm an excellent lucky charm."

For a moment, Logan stared at her. Did this bimbo really think he'd fall for such a lame approach? But then, if he wanted to be totally honest, before he'd met his Ace, he'd have cordially accepted her offer and invitation. Not anymore though. Now he expected more. Wanted more. A whole lot more.

He wanted his Ace.

Unfortunately though, she wasn't here. Nor had she called or came to see him. She was back on campus though, that much he did know. He had seen her car in her parking space during his morning jog. And he wasn't quite sure what he wanted to think about her lack of contacting him. Perhaps she just needed more time. It probably would be understandable. But then, it also meant that obviously, their kiss and their encounter hadn't the same effect on her as it had on him. He was going up the walls with his need and she… yeah well. Or should he call her after all? No. Not yet. It had been her family who had interrupted them. And it wouldn't be of any use anyway. He had to leave for the trip tomorrow and this night was the poker night. As the host he would not be able to ditch everybody in his dorm suite to go to Rory. Besides, it was Sunday. That meant that tomorrow there would be classes and Rory would want to attend her classes. Not exactly what he had in mind for their first morning after. Nor did he want to have to leave her for a week afterwards.

He got distracted out of his thoughts when the bimbo suddenly leaned a lot closer onto his body than Logan appreciated, her hands running over his chest.

"I could give you a reward every time you win," she whispered, licking her lips. "And if you lose, I'm sure I'll find a way to console you."

"Whoa…" Logan said and stepped back, plastering on his smiley mask. "Not that I don't appreciate your offer… uh… sorry, what was your name?" he asked, trying to remember if he had even met this one before. Girls like her were so much alike it was hard to remember sometimes.

"Tiffany," she helped him out.

That didn't help much. He knew three different Tiffanys. Well, at least she wasn't one of those three. "Yeah, right, Tiffany, but I fear I have to pass for tonight," he told the girl straight out.

Her smile wavered. "Wha..." she started to protest but quickly stopped herself and smiled again, stepping once again closer to Logan. "You sure, sugar? I could give you a night you won't forget anytime soon."

Logan shook his head and stepped back again. "Sorry, no. But I'm sure there are others who'd love to have your full attention," he told her, only slightly sarcastic, for which he congratulated himself. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to see to my guests." Not waiting for her reaction, he turned and headed over to the poker table to sit down at one end of the table.

"Jeez, Tiff looks as if she had eaten a lemon. What did you tell her?" Robert asked, raising an eyebrow.

Not too surprised that Robert knew the bimbo, Logan shrugged. "I merely suggested she'd concentrate more on entertaining my guests than me," he said shortly and looked around. Colin, Robert, Logan and the card dealer were already sitting around the table, ready for the game to begin, but Lanny was still over at the bar, chatting with a couple of guys Logan knew from the LDB. "Hey Lanny! You coming?" he called out to his roommate.

Lanny looked up and soon came over. "Sorry," he apologized and sat down.

Robert glanced at him and rubbed his hands. "What are we waiting for? We're all here now," he asked impatiently.

Colin shook his head. "Boy, you really must need the money. What happened? Lost a bet again?" he asked while Logan nodded to the card dealer to begin dealing the cards.

"I just can't wait to see Huntz's face when he loses to me again," Robert said with a shrug and smiled at the cards in his hands.

Logan smiled. "Careful, Robert, one could think you have it out for me."

"Nah… I just like to see a Huntzberger sweat a little from time to time," Robert gave back. "Five hundred," he made his play.

Lanny sighed and folded.

Logan threw a quick glance into his cards. A small pair and that was it. But he'd rather eat a broomstick than to fold already. He threw in his chips. "Playing and double the stake," he claimed and looked at Robert. "I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed. It needs a lot more than what you can offer for me to sweat," he commented.

Colin threw in his chips. "Why do you two always have to bark at each other like two dogs?" he asked with a sigh.

"We just like to wet our tongues," Logan said.

"Plus, Huntz asks for it," Robert stated and threw in his chips as well. "I'll take two," he told the card dealer and put down two of his cards.

Logan shrugged. "Not anyone can be as rich and good looking as me," he said dryly. "Two," he said and put down his two weakest cards.

The card dealer dealt him his two new cards and Logan checked them out. Ah, now that looked better. His pair had just become a triple.

"Please tell me you two won't continue this the whole evening," Colin said with a groan. "One."

"Dunno, Colin. Depends on how long it will take Huntz to lose his allowance to me, starting right now," Robert said and laid down his cards. "Full House," he beamed.

"Night's still young," Logan said with a shrug and threw in his cards.

He didn't care how or to whom, but he wouldn't stop playing tonight until he saw Robert losing his money and - most of all - his arrogant smirk.

* * *

Two hours later the night was still young – and that was damn good so far because, Logan was losing big time and so were Colin and Lanny. This meant that Robert was winning – and had no qualms pointing that out time and time again, accompanied by nasty side marks against Logan. This in turn meant that Logan was seething and slowly starting to lose his cool. Not to mention that he wasn't enjoying the poker party so far. Not that that surprised him much. Robert was here after all. And this time, Logan didn't even have Finn along to help him mock the arrogant bastard. There were only Colin and Lanny; and, Colin wouldn't team up with him against Robert and Lanny – well, was Lanny. If the poker game hadn't been held at Logan's place this time he wouldn't even be here. He simply wasn't part of the circle, though his family had money too, they just weren't society. Besides, Logan's roommate would hardly be able to put up against Robert anyway. He was too – gentle for that.

And there was sadly no one else who could help him against Robert. With a sigh, Logan looked around his dorm suite with a slight frown. In fact, he barely knew the other persons who were hanging out around. There was that girl who had come on to him earlier. What was her name again? Something with T. She was still around, having gone on to flirt with Colin - and each time she did that she threw a provocative look towards Logan's way. Probably, she wanted to make him jealous. Tough luck there. Logan couldn't care less. As for his other guests… someone had proclaimed himself in charge of music – and wasn't doing too good a job at it. There were a few other girls, no one he knew though and for that Logan was fairly thankful. He wasn't in the mood to deal with one of his ex-fuck-buddies.

At that thought he frowned. Wait. Ex? Since when were they exes? Sure, there definitely were a lot of girls he had no intention whatsoever to ever get together with again. But there also were a lot of girls he still held contact with. They weren't exes. Not to mention that there were still a lot of girls yet for him to meet out there, like the girls gathered around here. His gaze swept over them. Not one appealed to his interest. Not even a slight jerk of his attention. With a frown he stared at his cards. This wasn't… normal for him. One or two of the girls weren't so bad. Actually, one was pretty much what his friends would call his type. Normally, he'd have this girl sitting beside him by now, whispering promises for later into her ear every now and then and accompany them with certain caresses or touches to underline his promise. Not tonight though. Tonight he was almost appalled at the thought of spending any time with them, let alone flirt with them. Nor did he feel even the slightest attraction, despite them being quite good looking.

But they weren't what he longed for. Their hair had the wrong color, their eyes had the wrong color as well and lacked that sparkle of intelligence and humor he wanted to see in them. They were either too slim or too tall and all of them had definitely the wrong proportions. Their skin mostly was brown or at least rosy, not the porcelain white he now preferred.

In short: they weren't his Ace.

Frustrated, Logan shook his head and threw in his worthless cards. When would this insane obsession about Rory stop finally? Would it ever? God, he hoped so.

And he hoped that this evening would come to an end soon. He was bored and disgusted. If Colin wasn't there and if he didn't desperately wanted to win his money back he'd have thrown them all out already a while ago. Or he'd have gone out or into his room. Too bad that he was hosting this event. If only Finn was here as well. Everything would be more tolerable then.

Or if he could just be with his Ace tonight and finish what they had started the day before.

With a huge grin, Robert shoveled the chips he won together and Logan groaned silently. Great. Robert had won again. Damn it, how did he do that? And how was Logan supposed to win back his money when he was consistently losing?

The card dealer was about to deal out new cards when suddenly, Logan's cell phone rang. Logan froze for a moment. The tune of 'Entertainment'. Ace. That was the tune he had programmed and assigned for his Ace. His Ace was calling him! His heart starting to beat wildly, he quickly got up. "Sorry, got to take this," he hastily excused himself and rushed to his room. He definitely didn't want an audience while he took this phone call.

Why would she call him? God, he hoped it was what he desperately wanted it to be.

Taking a deep breath, he answered the call. "Hello?"

"Hi. It's Rory," Rory's voice answered, sounding a bit nervous.

Of course, she didn't know that she had already a special tune just for herself, telling Logan immediately that it was her who called him. And Logan had no intention of letting her know that little fact. But God, it felt good to hear her voice again, Logan thought, starting to smile a real smile for the first time since… well, since yesterday. "Rory Gilmore as I live and breathe," he said, a warm feeling spreading through his body.

"So… how are you?" Rory asked, a bit timidly.

Well, Logan couldn't blame her for that. After all, her family _had_ come down hard on him. Not that he blamed her for that. "I'm good, Ace," he reassured her. "How are you?" he wanted to know and his heart beat only a bit faster in anticipation of her answer.

Oh, please, let her not have changed her mind about them!

"I'm good," she said, nothing more.

Well, that didn't tell him much about where they were now standing. Okay, time to get a bit bolder. But Jeez, he really needed to know where they stood right now. "Hope your life's been less exciting since the last time I saw you," he said lightly, hoping she'd catch the question in it.

"Relatively," she answered, shortly again.

And what was that supposed to mean? Were they okay now or not? Ugh. Typical that she didn't make it easy for him. "Meaning you're steering clear of country club dressing rooms?" he clarified, having to smile when he remembered just what wonderful things they had done in there.

"Pretty much," she answered and he thought he could hear a smile in her voice there.

But once again, it didn't tell him much about the things he wanted to know. Like if they were okay. And most importantly: when could they see each other again? "Good," he answered, resigned. He had given her enough opportunities now to put the cards on the table. Apparently though she wasn't as interested in clearing the situation as he was.

Or was she perhaps waiting for him to suggest something? Damn it! What was he supposed to do in such a situation?

"Yeah. So…" Rory picked up the conversation again and something in her voice had Logan stop his rambling thoughts and to listen intently to her next words. "I was wondering if maybe you…" she interrupted herself, apparently having lost the nerve to say whatever she wanted to say.

But Logan's hope had just gotten a major confidence boost. "Yeah?" he probed her to finish her question.

He heard her taking a deep breath and his anticipation grew. "If you'd like to hang out, or something?" Rory finally finished.

Puzzled, Logan's thoughts stilled. "Hang out?" he asked, surprised.

_Hang out?_ After everything that had happened yesterday, after the trouble she had to get that question out, she just wanted to hang out?

"Yeah," she confirmed though, her voice growing firmer.

"When?" he asked, slightly frowning.

How could she want to just hang out? Was their hanging out not enough? After what had happened between them yesterday they definitely were past hanging out.

"How about tonight?" she suggested, nervous again.

Logan's eyebrows shot upwards. _Now?_ She wanted to hang out tonight? "Whoa… Miss Spontaneity!" he responded, surprised.

"I'm very 'of the moment' these days," Rory commented.

That, she could say out loud. His Ace definitely was full of surprises this weekend. And he wanted to see her, there was no question about that. It was just… he wished she'd have called for more than just asking him to hang out with her. Not that that meant he was going to decline her suggestion. After all, there was already a party going on, perfect time to hang out.

"Well, sure. I'd love to hang out with you," he answered. "Come on over."

"To your place?" she clarified.

"Absolutely," Logan confirmed with a smile, despite his disappointment that she just wanted to hang out. He was at least going to see her again, finally, and that prospect was enough to cheer him up for now.

"Cool," Rory said and Logan could hear her relief and excitement in her voice.

"See you in a bit," he told her, his smile growing. Slightly, he wondered why she'd be relieved though. Or had been nervous in the first place. It wasn't as if he had ever refused her to hang out with him. Quite the contrary. He had nearly begged her and spent hours convincing her to spend more time with him and his friends.

"See you in a bit," she agreed and with that, they both hang up.

Logan quickly set his phone on vibration and slowly, stuffed it back in his pocket. With Rory being there he didn't want any interruptions. Normally, he'd shut it off completely, but with Finn out on his own he knew better than to do that. It wouldn't be the first time that he or Colin would get a phone call in the middle of the night with the request to come pick up Finn. Once, they had to go bail him out and pick him up in Alaska. To this day they had no idea how the Australian had landed there. And though it wasn't too uncommon for him to get arrested for public disturbance by running around naked it was still a mystery how anyone or anything had been able to get Finn to undress in a freezing Alaskan night.

He hoped though that Finn wouldn't get in any trouble tonight. Though, if Logan was honest, he had no idea what to expect of this evening. Somehow, he had trouble seeing Rory during a poker night, mingling with those people. He would never have invited her here on his own. But then, she had wanted to hang out, hadn't she? Well, that she could have now. And boy, it would probably get very interesting to see her getting along tonight and Logan was definitely looking forward to witnessing that.

Actually, he was just looking forward to seeing her again in a few minutes.

If it were just for more than mere hanging out! He didn't want to hang out with her. Not right now though. Right now he wanted to see her, be alone with her. He wanted to kiss her again, draw her back into his arms. He wanted to feel that fire again, wanted to feel her hands roaming his body while his explored that luscious body of hers. He wanted to lose himself in her again.

He wanted a date.

And she wanted to hang out. He sighed. How was he supposed to interpret that? That hey, it had been fun, but he clearly wasn't worth the trouble, but, hey, let's stay friends? Was that why she had been so nervous and then relieved? Or was it something else altogether? Was that perhaps her way of reinitiating contact between them? Something that would go beyond hanging out?

God, this woman was driving him crazy!

Shaking his head, Logan headed back to the common room to rejoin his guests. Rory would take a few minutes to get here. And perhaps, she still had to change clothes so it could take a lot longer than just a few minutes. Though, if he remembered correctly, his Ace could dress herself surprisingly fast if she wanted to. And on the phone, she had sounded as if she was ready to go.

Apparently, the other guys in the poker game had decided to use Logan's excusing himself for a short break to take a quick time out for themselves also as Colin waited for Logan just outside his door.

"So, who was that?" he asked the moment Logan stepped out of his room.

Logan glanced at him. "Who?" he asked innocently.

Colin shook his head and threw a warning glare his way. "Don't even try to play dumb. Who was this oh so important call with a tune all for himself? Or should I rather say 'herself'?"

"I don't…" Logan started to evade the question again, but got interrupted by Colin. "It wasn't Finn. Nor the family. Surely not me. Neither did it ring in the tune you have for other friends or common callers. So who was it?"

"Since when do you know my tunes so well?" Logan asked, irritated.

"Was it Rory?" Colin asked, ignoring his question.

It was fairly obvious that he wouldn't get around giving Colin an answer. With a sigh, Logan nodded.

Colin started to smile. "You heading to her place now?" he asked with a wink.

Logan threw him a glare and shook his head. "No. She's coming over," he corrected Colin.

Colin's smile vanished again and he frowned. "Here?" he asked, surprised. "Logan, you don't seriously think about having sex with her with all of us right in the next room?"

Irritated, Logan glared at Colin. Who did his friend think he was exactly? "No. She's coming over to hang out, nothing else," he snapped.

Colin blinked. "To hang out?" he asked, puzzled. "At a poker night?"

Logan shrugged and nodded. "Her idea, not mine."

Frowning, Colin shook his head. "Wouldn't have pegged her for being interested in such a night," he commented and narrowed his eyes. "You did tell her just what is going on here, didn't you?"

Logan shook his head. "She wanted to hang out tonight so I invited her over."

Why? Did it matter? She just wanted to hang out after all, nothing more.

Colin's frown vanished and chuckled. "I can't wait to see her reaction to the little party here," he said with a grin and headed back to the poker table.

Confused, Logan followed him. What exactly was Colin's problem? Ace wanted to hang out and where could she better hang out than here at this little party? It wasn't as if she wanted to see him and _only_ him, Logan thought bitterly.

* * *

"What's with you, suddenly? You're playing worse than usual, not that I complain," Robert asked with a sneer, sending a curious glance Logan's way, as he shoveled the chips he had won in front of him.

Logan shrugged absentminded. "Just bad card luck," he brushed Robert's comments off.

Where was she? Had she perhaps changed her mind? It has been now twenty minutes since her call then.

Colin snickered but thankfully, knew better to elaborate his disbelief. Good. Logan was in perfect kick-his-shin-position and would have no qualms using his foot.

The card dealer dealt out new cards and Logan almost sighed. Again, nothing big. Well, perhaps this time Robert hadn't much either and Logan could win while bluffing. "One g," he announced and threw in his chips.

Colin simply threw his chips in. Robert though doubled. Damn. Robert wouldn't double if he hadn't good cards. He was too much of a chicken shit for that.

At that moment, there was a knock at the door and Logan looked up. That was probably his Ace. And now of all the times he couldn't go to let her in as it was his turn to play. He really didn't want to give Robert an indication just how much he had anticipated Rory's arrival. He looked at Lanny who had folded his cards again already. "Can you get that?" he asked reluctantly.

With a shrug, Lanny got up and went over to the door which was unfortunately at Logan's back, so he couldn't see if it was really his Ace finally arriving.

"Hey, Huntz! You're going to lose anyway, no need to drag it out!" Robert impatiently urged Logan to continue with the game.

"Easy, Robbie, one could get the idea that you need that money very urgently," Logan coldly countered and went with Robert's raise.

Robert glared at him. If he hated one thing, it's to be called Robbie. But Logan ignored him and looked back over his shoulder. What was taking Rory so long to come in? If it was her at all. He frowned. Perhaps it was someone else, though Logan had no idea who it could be. Then again, he hardly knew anyone who was currently in his dorm. "Hey, who is it?" he called out to Lanny.

"Girl scout," Lanny called back, bored.

Logan smiled. Nope, it was his Ace all right. "Hey Ace! Come on in!" he invited her in.

At that, Lanny stepped back. "Come on in," he too invited her in.

Rory hesitantly stepped over the threshold and Lanny closed the door behind her before moving back to his place. Logan quickly gave her a once over and felt his body immediately react to the glorious sight in front of him. Wow… she was beautiful. Not that that was something new, but she seldom dressed herself to accentuate her natural beauty. Tonight she had, that much he could say even with her coat still on. Her skirt was just long enough to taunt a man to find out just how much more was hidden beneath the skirt while her tight shirt hugged wonderfully every curve of hers, especially that of her chest. And she was wearing high boots. Logan loved high boots. Then her hair – it was falling down in soft curls and she had put on a light make-up that brought out the exquisiteness of her deep blue eyes and that delicate white skin while some gloss was making her lips shine, simply inviting anyone to ravish those soft lips.

Thank God Logan was sitting. With some trouble, he forced his vision of throwing her over his shoulder to bring her into his room and throw her onto his bed, and smiled at her, while she took in the scenery, puzzled.

"Welcome to my night of humiliating defeat," Logan greeted her.

Of course, Robert had to chime in at that. "One in a series."

Probably sensing Logan's annoyance, Colin quickly intervened. "Don't gloat, Robert. It's not Christian."

"Neither am I," stated Robert.

"Everybody, this is Rory," Logan made the introduction before Robert could say another dense remark.

Unfortunately, Robert's attention was now on Rory as well and Logan noticed with narrowed eyes as Robert checked out his Ace. "Hi," Robert greeted Rory, turning on his charm and Logan felt himself bristle some more.

"Hey," Colin greeted her warmly, smiling at her.

Logan turned back to Rory, who looked a bit uncomfortable. He wondered why. Perhaps because she hardly knew anyone here. "I'd introduce you, but I only know three of them," he said lightly.

"It's to you, buddy," Colin added.

"Oh, joy," Logan said, rolling his eyes. "Come on, kiddo, sit here next to me," he then asked Rory, patting the seat beside him.

It would be torture to have her so near and not be able to act on that, but he definitely didn't want Rory anywhere else than right beside him.

"Is that allowed?" Rory asked, slowly coming closer.

"I wouldn't object," Robert leered.

Logan ignored the urge to throw something at Robert's head and looked Rory into her eyes. "Come on, be my good luck charm," he invited her again and to his pleasure, she sat down beside him now and he felt his body immediately react to her nearness and flare up as the warmth of her body as well as that unique scent of hers hit him full force. The game. The game was still on. But Logan had honestly no idea where they were. "Did I raise or check?" he asked, staring at his cards.

"You been eating out of aluminum pans again, buddy?" Colin smirked and earned himself a kick from Logan.

"You're short term memory is non-existent," Robert too sneered. Too bad he wasn't in kicking range.

"It's the aluminum pans," Logan said dryly.

"The more you stall, the slower I win," Robert impatiently reminded him that it was probably his turn.

Damn it, how was he supposed to concentrate with having Rory so near and still being unable to do anything?

"That was almost grammatically correct," Colin told Robert.

Meanwhile, Logan saw that the card dealer was looking at him expectantly. Cards! They were at the cards. "Two," he said.

Colin laid down his cards. "Call."

"Hold up," Logan said and turned towards Rory, leaning in closer to her, but was careful to not touch her. He wasn't sure if he could stop if they touched. And something told him that she wouldn't appreciate him taking her right here on the poker table with a bunch of strangers around them. And most importantly, he would mind it as well. "You look very nice tonight," he complimented her, wanting her to know just how very much he liked her looks tonight.

She may just have come over to hang out – didn't mean though that he couldn't put on a bit of pressure on her to show her that he hadn't forgotten just where they had been interrupted the day before.

Surprised, she looked at him. "Oh, thanks," she said, blushing a bit.

Logan smiled. He just loved the way she blushed. "What do you know about this game?" he asked, waving at the poker game.

"Uhm, just what I've seen on T.V. 'The Odd Couple'," she answered.

"What?" Logan laughed. What was she talking about?

"Quincy played it, but he wasn't called Quincy, uhm," she wrinkled her forehead, trying to remember, "Oscar and Felix! Felix didn't play it. Tony Randall, he cooked for them sometimes," Rory explained.

Logan had no idea what she was talking about, but then, this was the girl that had watched 'The Office' four times. "I am so lost," he told her, shaking his head.

"I know a little," she summarized with a small nod.

"Well, if you know anything, you know I need a jack or a ten," he said, laid down his cards and looked over to Robert, leaning back.

Robert laid down his cards and of course his cards beat Logan's by far.

"Pocket jacks," Colin commented.

Logan shook his head. "Un-bloody believable!" How did Robert do this?

Robert grinned triumphantly. "Do we bother with fifth street?" he asked.

"Let's see," Logan agreed.

The card dealer lays down and indeed, Fifth Street. Logan and Colin cried out their disbelief. How could Robert be so damn lucky?

"Oh, night's marking me," Logan said with a sigh.

Robert collected his chips and looked at Rory, while the card dealer dealt out new cards again. "Well, your gal brought someone some luck," he commented suggestively.

Before Logan could say something, Colin intervened again. "Two g's. Ouch."

Rory gasped. "That was two thousand dollars?" she asked, unbelieving.

"Got to bet it to win it," Colin replied unfazed.

Logan could sense Ace's discomfort. No wonder. Her grandparents made her work for her allowance after all. To her, two thousand was probably much money, as absurd as that was for a Hartford Gilmore. "It's just money," he reminded her, gently. It was. For them, it was just some pocket change.

"He's down nine to me from last time," Robert, the jerk, told Rory and looked at Logan. "Should I send an I.O.U. to your Pop, that how you want to work it? Cut out the middle man?"

No, no, no! Logan wouldn't get into a fight with Robert, not in front of Rory. Besides, he had an excellent tongue as well after all. "Yeah, and I'll send some to your mother," he retorted, hinting to the rumor that Robert's mom, bored out of her mind by her husband, had started a little, highly exclusive special service that paid her lucratively.

Robert's eyes narrowed a little. But he too didn't want to start a fight and merely referred himself to a verbal retort. "Generic, unfocused 'and-so's-your-mother' style comeback. You're off the game, Huntz," he said.

"I'll work on a better retort and get back to you," Logan threw back sarcastically while looking down and playing with his cards.

Instead of firing back, Robert fixed his eyes on Rory. "So… Are you covering this?"

Startled, Rory looked at him. "Pardon me?" she asked.

"You were at the last Life and Death shindig, as I recall," Robert pointed out.

Understanding dawning on Rory, she nodded. "Yeah, but I'm not covering this. I'm just hanging out," she told him.

His eyes narrowed, Logan glared at Robert. He didn't like that jerk talking with her. And he definitely didn't like the way Robert looked at his Ace. "Yeah, back off, Robert," he warned, his voice turning cold to make sure that Robert would get the message to leave Rory alone. "She's just hanging out."

Before the tension between them could rise any higher, that annoying girl who had flirted with Logan earlier came over, bringing Colin a new drink. She threw a nasty glare Rory's way as Colin gallantly kissed her hand. "Thanks, kid."

She smiled down at Colin. "Oh, you're welcome," she breathed and left again with another glare at Logan and Rory, her hand caressing Colin's shoulder.

Colin looked back into the poker table. "I love the service here," he stated with a grin.

"I'm out," Lanny announced and folded his cards in front of him.

"Down to the tricks again," Colin commented.

"I'm in," Robert announced, without even bothering to look at his cards but instead staring heatedly at Rory.

Irritated, Logan shook his head. "Don't be a jerk, Robert," he warned.

"What?" Robert asked innocently.

"You bet without looking at your cards. Look at your cards," Logan ordered, his patience with Robert definitely running out by now.

But Robert left his cards on the table and smiled at Rory. "I don't need to, with Rory here," he declared.

"I hate it when he does that," Colin sighed, once again preventing Logan to jump down Robert's throat.

Growling inside, Logan turned to Rory. "You want a drink?" he asked.

She startled again. "Me?"

Logan nodded. "Yeah."

"Well, actually, I don't know how long I'm going to stay here so I think I'm good for now," she told him.

She already wanted to leave so soon? Why? Think of it, she hadn't even gotten out of her coat yet, only her scarf was taken off so far. Apparently she didn't like it here very much. But hell, she had been the one who had suggested hanging out, hadn't she? So why was she so difficult now?

Women.

"All right. Well, the way it's going tonight, I may not last till the next drink either," he said, turning back to the game and tossed some chips in.

Colin threw in his chips as well and looked over to the guy who had taken it upon himself to play DJ for this night. "Can we change the music?" he asked, a bit exasperated.

The guy glared back at him. "No."

Colin frowned. "Since when did you become Tipper Gore?"

"Shut up, Colin," the guy hissed.

"Oh, aren't we a bit sensitive tonight?" Colin sneered and shook his head. "Rory, help!"

Once again startled out of her thoughts, Rory looked up. "Huh?"

Colin pointed over to the music system. "This 08/15 music. It's going on like that since this party started and my ears will soon be falling off if they have to suffer through another hour of stupid elevator music. But, unfortunately, as you can see, there's not one single person around here with a good taste in music but me and you. As I'm occupied here, why don't you go over there and see to it that we get to hear some real music?" he pleaded with her.

Rory smiled. "And what gives you the idea that he'll let me change it when he obviously is so adamant playing the role of DJ tonight?"

"Oh, please, babe," Colin said, rolling his eyes. "One look into your pleading Bambi-eyes and Dave will fall to his knees and hand over the role of DJ on a silver tray."

"I think you highly overrate my female attributes and seducing talents, but sure, I can try it," Rory said and made a face. "This music's really awful." She stood up. "Any special requests?" she asked, shrugging out of her coat and laying it over her chair.

Logan's eyes gazed over her body, finally no obstruction by the coat, revealing her in all her clothed glory and damn, it was a sight that made his mouth go dry and his pants getting much tighter all of a sudden. The desire to drag her to his room or take her right here on the table got almost unbearable.

He. Wanted. Her.

"Something sexy," Robert immediately suggested with a leer.

"As we're at a poker game, I'd rather suggest something fitting to that – though I have my doubts that Logan has anything fitting," Colin gave his two bits.

Taking a deep breath, Logan tried to come back to the here and now and the harsh reality that he had his dorm suite full of people who probably wouldn't leave before dawn. "Thanks, Colin," Logan said sarcastically, if perhaps a bit husky and looked up at Rory. "Just pick something you like, Ace, and don't listen to these idiots," he suggested to her quietly.

"I object to being referred to as an idiot," Robert protested.

Rolling her eyes, Rory smiled and went over to the music collection to pick out some discs. Logan missed her nearness, but considering what an ass Robert was it was perhaps for the best. And considering how poorly he could control himself with her near him, it was definitely good if she wasn't too close to him right now, overloading his senses with the essence that was her. Besides, it was obvious that Rory had been a bit bored watching them play cards and Logan couldn't really blame her for that. He looked back into his cards and picked up the two new cards. And did a double check. Wait, wasn't that… oh yeah. Suppressing his grin, Logan quickly looked back up. Ah, Robert didn't look too happy about his cards. Good.

This time, Logan was going to win.

About damn time!

* * *

"Let's take a break, guys," Logan suggested and stretched.

They had been playing for an hour straight now and from the lack of protest from the guys, he guessed they were ready for a break also. Robert jumped up immediately and headed over to the bar, scowling. It hadn't been a good hour for Robert. Logan had won half of the games, Colin a few as well, hell, even Lanny had won two rounds. Meaning, Robert had lost quite some money. Then again, he had such a head start from the previous games that it still would take a lot more for Logan to win back all his money. But if it continued like that, it was only a matter of time now. Looked like Rory indeed was some kind of a lucky charm and somehow, that didn't surprise him at all. He headed over to the bar to pour himself a drink as well and then quickly went over to Rory, who was still looking through his music collection while chatting with the former DJ, Dave, and some girl.

"Hey," he greeted her softly, touching the small of her back briefly.

She turned to him and smiled. "Hey. You broke already?"

"Not yet," Logan laughed. It looked as if she had cheered up in the meantime. "You enjoying yourself?" he asked.

Rory nodded. "Yeah. Dave and Cheryl here are good for some interesting conversations. Did you know that an ant can lift ten times its weight? That's as if we could lift a big truck."

Only his Ace could enjoy herself with stories about biology. Logan rolled his eyes. "Nope. But I'm sure my life will be richer now that I know that."

"No need to be sarcastic, Huntzberger," Rory chided him and as Dave and Cheryl left the two alone, thankfully, she turned to face him fully. "I wanted to have a word with you anyway."

"You did?" Logan asked, raising an eyebrow.

She nodded eagerly, so her soft curls bounced a little. "Yep. I knew, from previous short comments here and there from you, that your taste of music seriously is lacking, but this," she waved at his collection, "has got to be the worst collection I've ever seen in my life. I mean, you don't have one single Bono!"

Logan's eyebrow rose a bit higher. "You do know, of course, that taste in music is highly individual and for each person different."

"Bono is a must," Rory protested.

"No. It may be a must for you," Logan with spoke, shaking his head. "That doesn't mean that he has to be a must for me or anyone else."

"The music a person likes and listens to says as much about a person as the books he reads," Rory pointed out.

"Which again, differs with each person," Logan said with a smile. "But, if it reassures you, I may add that I have a Bono at home."

But Rory shook her head, not content with that. "Well, at least something. But really Logan, you have some discs here for which you should be arrested."

"I suppose you don't mean the pirated copies?" Logan wanted to know.

"Of course not, everyone has them, though I really don't see why you, with your Amex black card, need to copy music," Rory said. "But here, take this for example." She turned to a shelf and pulled out one of the discs that she held out to him by holding it with two fingers on a corner and making a disgusted face.

Curious, Logan took the disc and looked at her questioningly. "What do you have against Mariah Carey?" he asked.

"Oh, please, don't get me even started why you so should burn this thing right now! And worse, I even found an old 'Take That' disc!" Rory exclaimed, shuddering. "I shouldn't even be speaking to you anymore!"

Logan shrugged and put the disc away. "The ladies like it," he told her. Actually, if he remembered correctly, these were both discs some girls had wanted him to have and so had brought along sometime.

A snort was all the comment Rory gave about girls who liked that kind of music.

"It seems as if you still found some things you bear to listen to though, so it can't be that bad, can it?" Logan countered.

She sighed and frowned at his collection. "That's where the mystery remains. Contrary to the trash you own, there are quite a few things that are acceptable or even just what every good collection needs, like the complete collection of Depeche Mode. And there are a few discs for which I'm very amazed that an ignorant like you have. You have the two Pink Martinis for example. Hardly anyone here knows them. And then even some of the Erste Allgemeine Verunsicherung. They are a rarity here in the States. Yet you have them. And that," she looked at him, her eyes shining with smoldering heat that went straight to a lower region of Logan, "is pretty much impressive."

His eyes locked with hers, Logan stepped closer to her. "You think so?" he asked in a soft, deep voice.

She swallowed, but nodded. Then she raised an eyebrow. "And I can't help but wonder if they aren't only part of your collection thanks to Finn and perhaps even Colin?" she asked with a knowing smile.

Logan blinked and laughed. "Busted," he admitted.

"I thought so," Rory said with a nod.

"But the fact remains that they are here and that I actually like those groups very much as well, right?" Logan wanted to know.

Smiling, Rory shrugged. "I guess so."

"So are you still speaking to me?" Logan asked, amused.

She sighed heavily. "If I absolutely have to," she said, her eyes sparkling with mischief now.

"Wow, Ace, I'm touched," Logan said dryly.

"Well you should. My mom would disinherit me if she finds out that I'm seeing…" she interrupted herself with a frown and looked away, causing Logan to wonder what she had been going to say. "That I'm friends with someone who has no Bowie but owns a 'Take That' disc."

"Ah, I see. Well, then we mustn't tell your mom and make sure we immediately clean up my collection so it's presentable. Though I insist on letting it be _my_ collection and not yours," Logan suggested, touching her arm.

"Now would I ever do that?" Rory asked innocently, blinking at him.

Logan let out a small laugh. "I may not know you for very long so far, Lorelai Leigh Gilmore, but I'm certain to say that yes, you would very well do that. That glint in your eyes is too much like Finn's when he tries to clean out my collection."

She sighed. "Okay, okay… But hey! I could make a list."

"A list?" Logan asked, raising an eyebrow.

She nodded eagerly and her eyes started to glow. "Yeah. Which of those pathetic discs have to go, absolutely without discussion, which ones should go as well if you really want to become someone with a good taste in music and then of course a list of those music discs that are a must and of those you should have even though they are a bit less important than the must haves."

Logan blinked. "_Four_ lists? You want to make four lists?"

Again, she nodded eagerly. "Yeah. And I could also make a list of those I think you may like and so could try it out at one time. I can lend you a few of my discs, you know? And…"

"Whoa, Ace, stop," Logan interrupted her, holding up his hands.

Frowning, she stopped. "What?"

He smiled. "Let me guess: you like making lists, don't you, Ace?"

She blushed and looked down, shrugging. "Yeah, well… it's nice to have lists. Makes everything a lot clearer in life," she said, somewhat embarrassed.

Shaking his head, Logan laid a finger under her chin and lifted her head until he could see into her eyes again. "No need to apologize," he told her quietly, smiling.

"I wasn't apologizing," she protested with a frown. "Lists are a good thing."

"I'm sure they are," Logan agreed, gazing into her eyes. He simply loved how much passion she could bring up for something as simple as a list. And he loved how her cheeks blushed whenever she was embarrassed and he loved how her eyes started to sparkle almost every time she spoke. He drew closer to her, no longer wanting to have to wait to kiss her again.

He definitely loved her kisses as well.

"Hey, Huntz, what in the hell are you waiting for? I have to win my money back," Robert's nasty voice broke through the moment.

Logan was just about to turn around to tell Robert what he could do with his money when Dave and Cheryl returned. "You're lacking Gilmore," Dave said. "The last disc ran out almost like five minutes ago and you still haven't put in the new one."

Blushing furiously, Rory drew back and turned away from Logan. "Oh, yeah, uh, guess I didn't… well, we said some Blues Brothers next, right?" she asked, flustered, and grabbed one of the discs out of the pile on the table next to Logan's stereo system.

"Yeah," Dave said with a frown and pushed a glass into Rory's hands. "Here, brought something to drink."

"Hey, Huntz, tick. tock!" Robert once again called out to Logan.

For a moment longer, Logan kept his eyes on Rory who was taking a big gulp of her drink, avoiding his eyes. He sighed. Damn. Why did they always have to get interrupted?

"Coming," he called back and turned. After a few steps, he stopped and turned back to Rory. "Oh and Ace?"

Hesitantly, she lifted her head and looked at him. He smiled. "Have fun with the lists."

Her face brightened up and she nodded. "Don't worry, Logan, I always have fun making my lists."

He smirked. "I have no doubt about that," he commented dryly and turned to head the rest of the way over to the poker table. He ignored Colin's wide grin and rubbed his hands together. "Ready to lose? I'm going to win, I feel it," he announced and sat down to pick up the cards that already were laying there – and smiled.

Four aces.

His eyes trailed over to his own Ace and his smile grew when he saw that she had already found a pad and a pen somewhere and was eagerly scribbling now, totally enthralled in what she was doing.

Yep, he definitely was on the winning track right now.

* * *

"A street and I win again," Logan said with a grin and laid down his cards.

Frustrated, Robert threw in his cards, mumbling something under his breath.

Colin yawned and stood up, stretching. "Okay, I need a break, guys."

"We're not calling it a night," Robert snapped, glaring up at Colin.

"Relax man, I just said I need a break," Colin said, giving his friend a look and headed towards the bathroom.

"Yeah, Robert, don't worry, we won't stop until you've lost all your money," Logan smirked and stood up as well, stretching a little too.

"Ha! As if that's ever going to happen!" Robert snarled, but his conviction was seriously lacking. No wonder, it hadn't been going well for him in the past few hours, losing every time but once.

Logan looked pointedly at the shrunken pile of chips before Robert and shrugged. "Whatever you want to believe, Robert," he said, in an only slightly mocking tone and headed over to the bar to pour himself a drink that would revive him a bit. Not that he was tired, far from it. It was too much fun winning against Robert for that. So far, Logan had won quite a deal of his money back, but still a few thousand short and he planned to get them back as well. And a little bit more extra wouldn't hurt either. But it would still take some time to crack Robert and a punched-up drink couldn't hurt. He took a small sip and turned around, his eyes sweeping over the room. It was almost three o'clock in the morning and the party had died down by now. Some of the guests had gone home, some had crashed down somewhere like Lanny and there was a couple making out in a corner.

His gaze came to a stop as it fell on the delicate figure currently resting on his sofa and he found himself smiling. Ace had continued to act as a DJ while she was making her lists. Perhaps an hour ago or so she had moved over to the couch, still wrapped up in making her lists. Now though sleep had obviously caught up on her, as she sat on her side, her head resting on her arm propped up on the back of the couch, her feet tugged under her, the pad laying loosely in her other hand, her eyes closed.

It was a cute sight. But most of all, it was one of the most beautiful sights he had ever seen in his life and it sent an incredibly warm feeling through his entire being that filled up his heart.

This girl… How could Rory make him feel so much, even when she was simply sleeping?

Logan didn't know and right now, he didn't want to dwell on that and decided, to simply enjoy it. There was something on seeing her asleep on his couch, in his dorm suite, that he liked very much. It would even be better to have her sleeping in his bed, but that would definitely not happen tonight. He didn't want to wake the sleeping beauty. And he was pretty sure that if he were to wake her up and suggest to her to move to his bed that she would refuse and gather her things up to go over to her own dorm. Something he didn't want. He couldn't explain it, but it felt too good to have her near him and be able to keep her in his sight. He wanted her to spend the night here, and that even without any prospect of her spending it _with_ him.

And to say that that was a first would be the understatement of the century.

But that was another thing he didn't want to think about right now.

If ever.

His eyes lingered on his Ace for a moment longer. Hmm. As cute as she looked in that position, he doubted that it was very comfortable. She might get cramps if she stayed like this for too long. With a slight frown, he pushed away from the bar and brought his drink over to his place at the poker table. He looked back to Rory, his frown intensifying.

Perhaps… yes, this could work without raising her too much.

Quickly, he turned away and headed into his room where he grabbed one of the pillows off his bed and moved over to his closet to retrieve a blanket. With his booty under his arms, he went back outside, closing the door behind him, and made his way over to Rory. He placed the pillow on the couch's armrest and put the blanket aside for the moment. Next he gently pried the pad out of her limb fingers and put it on the small table next to the couch before he turned back to his Ace to lean over her.

"Ace?" he whispered.

No answer, she just kept taking deep breaths.

Slowly, he reached out and stroked with the back of his fingers over her cheek. "Rory," he called out softly again and, not receiving an answer again, sat onto the edge of the couch to slip his arms under the sleeping girl to gently lift her a little and lower her down so her head was resting on the pillow now.

She moaned a bit, but her head snuggled into the softness of the pillow. "Logan?" she asked, her voice heavy with sleep.

Logan smiled, ridiculously pleased that she recognized him even in her half sleep. He stroked a dark curl out of her face and nodded. "Yeah, Ace. Sleep on, I just wanted to make it a bit more comfortable for you," he told her in a whisper.

"'kay," she simply mumbled, burying her head deeper into the pillow and almost immediately, her breathing evened out again, indicating she had fallen back to sleep. Still smiling, Logan got up and grabbed the blanket. He shook it out and carefully covered Rory with it. Before he straightened up back again, he stroked over her silky-smooth hair and, unable to stop himself, pressed a soft kiss on her forehead. For a long moment, he stood there then, staring down at the peacefully sleeping girl, and he felt something deep inside him coming to a peaceful rest as well.

Shaking his head to come out of his almost trance-like state, he turned away from the couch only to meet Colin's eyes, who was watching him with a mixture of interest and astonishment. All of a sudden, Logan felt very self-conscious about his actions and hell if he didn't feel a blush creeping up his cheeks. Great. Now he was starting to blush as well. Damn it. He hadn't known that blushing was contagious. Avoiding Colin's curious eyes, his eyes quickly darted over the room and he noted with relief that Robert was thankfully not present at the moment. Probably in the bathroom.

Good.

It was bad enough that Colin had just witnessed this scene. No way did he want Robert to have witnessed it as well and to mock Logan with it. Ridiculing it all.

Brusquely, he brushed by Colin and went over to his place where he sat down and took a long gulp of his drink that left him sputtering a bit.

Wisely, Colin said nothing and just came over slowly to reclaim his place as well. Still, Logan could feel his friend's eyes heavy on him.

Before it grew too uncomfortable though, Robert emerged from the bathroom and came back over to the table. "Okay, let's get my money back," he demanded, unaware of the slight tension between the friends. "This time, I'm going to win again."

Colin snickered. "In your dreams perhaps."

Logan's eyes involuntarily shot over to his Ace again and he felt himself calming down from the turmoil in his head. Taking a deep breath, he tore his eyes away from her and grinned at Robert. "Tough luck there," he told him.

Something told Logan that this night, he was unbeatable.

* * *

Finally!

With utter contentment, Logan looked at the card in his hand. It was a dream hand for every poker player. But what was best, with his last win, Robert was finally finished once and for all – at least for this night. Though the night had passed away for quite some time now as the sun was already shining brightly into the room.

"Two," Logan announced and threw his chips in.

As Colin still stared thoughtfully at his cards, Logan gazed over to the couch, as he had many times since he had settled the sleeping Rory on it, and wasn't surprised to see Rory slightly rousing from her sleep. He had already wandered when she'd wake up and was now wondering how her reaction would be to find herself still in his dorm. When she had arrived, she had herself said she wasn't sure how long she'd be here and for sure hadn't anticipated spending the night here, of that Logan was quite certain. Oh yeah, he definitely was eager to see her reaction when she finds out that she slept on his couch.

"Come on, come on!" Robert impatiently urged on Colin, who still hadn't decided yet what he wanted to do and drew Logan's attention back to the game.

"I've made my decision," Colin nodded and threw in his chips. "I'm in. Three fifty."

With a slight frown, Robert threw in his chips as well. "Call."

Grinning, Logan went with Colin's raise and looked at Robert, the victory evident on his face. "I'm going to raise," he said, and threw in another three thousand, knowing full well that Robert couldn't go with that anymore.

"Ass," Robert muttered darkly, realizing that the game was over for him now.

"Our gentleman's courtesies still prevail, Robert," Colin immediately scolded the grumpy loser.

Robert glared at them. "Fine. _Mr._ Ass. Ass Esquire."

Colin and Logan exchanged a look and broke out in victorious laughter.

"He's cracked! We've cracked Robert!" Colin exclaimed with glee.

Logan nodded and, catching a movement out of the corner of his eyes, looked over to the couch and saw that Rory had sat up, looking around herself with confusion. His smug grin changed to a warm smile. "Morning' there, Ace, how'd you sleep?" he greeted her good morning.

Her confused eyes met his, but only for a moment because, of course, Robert had to butt in. "For the record: You don't snore," he told her with a suggestive look.

"We'd be happy to sign an affidavit to that effect for any prospective husband," Colin told her cheerfully, with a meaningful glance at Logan.

One that didn't go unnoticed and was promptly responded to with a kick against Colin's shin.

Thankfully, Rory had only time to throw the boys a glare before her cell phone started to ring and she dug it out, flipping it open. "Mom?" she asked sleepily.

Logan turned his head back to the boys but kept watching her, listening to the other end of the conversation, out of the corner of his eyes.

She crunched up her face in utter confusion now. "Sookie? At the house?" she mumbled in puzzlement.

This time she listened longer and from the way her eyes suddenly cleared of all traces of sleep and the small intake of breath, not to mention that she all of a sudden lost all color, Logan could tell that she didn't receive any good news.

"Oh, my God, is she hurt?"

Rory's gasp confirmed his suspicion and his head snapped around to watch her concerned, letting go of all pretense that he wasn't listening in the conversation. God, he hoped there hadn't been an accident or something like that.

"I'm coming," Rory told the person on the phone and jumped up to gather her things.

Absentmindedly, Logan pushed the cards in his hands away, never leaving Rory out of his eyesight. "I'm out," he said and quickly got up to go over to Rory who nearly bumped into him as she turned to hurry out of the room. "You okay?" he asked concerned.

"I have to go," she simply said, not really giving him an answer. But then, perhaps she was in some kind of shock. That phone call sure hadn't sounded good.

"What happened?" he wanted to know with a frown.

Rory shook her head. "I just have to go. I have to get home."

Argh, this wasn't making any sense! "To your dorm?" Logan tried to get clarification and understand her.

"Stars Hollow," she answered in a fluster and her eyes suddenly widened in shock. "Oh no! I don't have my car!"

Her car? Damn it, what was going on here? "Well, didn't you walk here, it's like a hundred yards away?" he asked puzzled.

"No! I mean I took it for its six month service. It's at the dealer!" she explained to him impatiently.

"You take your car to the dealer?" Logan said incredulously. "They so rip you off there!" he told her, shaking his head.

Her eyes snapped at him in anger. "Well it doesn't matter where it is! I don't have it! Which means that I have to take a bus or a train or something!" she exclaimed anxiously and reached for her cell again to flip it open.

"That will take hours," Logan reasoned, shaking his head.

Perhaps he could drive her… no, bad idea. First of all, he had drunk a lot, and secondly, he had to leave in the evening. And most of all, something told him that she doesn't need him there. But he'd be damned if he let her take the bus or train. She was in no condition to go all by herself, not to mention that it would trouble her even more, the longer it would take her to get home.

"I know. I have to go," she said absentmindedly and brushed past him, already pushing some buttons on her cell.

An idea struck him. Yeah! "Take my car," he told her and turned after her, already reaching into his pocket for his own cell phone.

"I don't want to drive your car," she refused, shaking her head as she stopped to push some more buttons.

His car? Oh, Ace had still a lot to learn if she thought he'd ever let her drive his baby. But now was not the time to remind her of that. "No," he said impatiently. "It's a car with a driver. I've got an account with the company," he explained.

Still, she was being foolishly stubborn. "No."

Logan frowned. "Take it," he insisted, well, ordered and flipped his cell open. "I'll give Frank a call, tell him to meet you out front." He looked up from the phone to meet her eyes and let her see that he wouldn't hear anymore protest on this. "He'll take good care of you. It's a done deal."

For a moment he thought she would refuse again, but finally she nodded. "Okay. Thanks," she gave in.

He nodded. "Go!" he urged her on, waving her away.

Rory didn't lose anymore time. "Thanks," she said again and then was already out of the door.

Logan didn't lose any time either and finished placing the call to Frank.

"Sir?" the deep voice of Frank greeted him.

"Frank, there's a situation. Come here immediately. In front of my dorm there's a girl waiting for you, brown hair, and blue eyes. Her name is Rory Gilmore. Drive her wherever she wants to go and get her there fast," Logan instructed his driver.

"As you wish, Sir," Frank said, no trace of surprise in his voice, not that that surprised Logan. Almost nothing surprised the calm man.

"Stay with her as long as she needs you. She probably will want you to drive back once you have taken her to her destination. You won't though and only come back with her, clear?" Logan continued.

"Yes, Sir," Frank calmly replied.

"If she's difficult about it, tell her to give me a call. And if it takes too long, call for further instructions," Logan gave more instructions and hoped that he had covered everything by now.

"Yes, Sir," Frank again answered unfazed.

"Okay," Logan said, taking a deep breath. "Just take good care of her, Frank."

This time, there was a slight pause on Frank's end. "Of course, Sir," he said after a moment though.

"Good. Then hurry over here now," Logan said, slightly uncomfortable.

"Already on my way. I should arrive to pick up Ms. Gilmore in about three minutes, Sir," Frank told him.

"Good. Bye," Logan said and slowly closed the phone with a sigh.

He turned and nearly yelped as Colin was standing right behind him, looking worriedly at him. "What happened?" he asked with a frown.

Logan shrugged and sighed again. "Dunno, she wouldn't tell. Just kept repeating that she had to go home. But whatever it was, it sure wasn't good news."

"Will she be okay?" Colin asked, the concern for Rory evident on his face.

"I hope so," Logan sighed and looked around. "Where's Robert?"

"I sent him on his way home before he lost even the last cent he has," Colin explained.

Relieved to hear that, Logan nodded his thanks to his friend. He really wouldn't have had the nerve to deal with the snotty bastard right now. He looked around his living room and made a face. There were still quite a number of strangers scattered around. He itched to throw them out, but in their place, he'd be happy to let him sleep it off as well. At least he wouldn't have to pick up the trash. Later that day a team would arrive to remove the poker table and extra chairs and would then do a quick clean up of the place. But he'd have to let them in. And he still had to pack a bag for the trip with his father.

Ugh. That damn trip. That it had to be now of all the times! What if Rory needed him after whatever had happened? And he was stuck over in London or wherever else his father would drag him to in the next week.

"Logan?"

Colin's voice penetrated through Logan's thoughts and he quickly looked back at his friend. "Yeah?"

"I asked if you want me to help you throw them out?" Colin again asked, apparently repeating a question and waving at the half dead bodies in Logan's suite.

Logan shook his head and yawned, the long night creeping up on him by now. "Nah, let them be. They'll wake up soon enough."

Colin nodded and suddenly looked tired as well. "I'm going to get a bit of sleep. You want to crash at our place?"

It was tempting, but Logan shook his head. "Thanks, but no. The clean-up team will soon be here."

Colin shrugged and went over to the door while Logan went to the card dealer in order to pay him for his services. Before Colin could grip the handle though, the door suddenly flew open, nearly slamming the door right on Colin's face and none other than their Australian friend stormed in.

A very unhappy Australian, from the looks of it.

"Here you are!" he exclaimed, annoyed.

"Yes, Finn, here we are. Wherever else should we be?" Colin asked with an eyeroll.

Logan pushed the money into the card dealer's hand, along with a generous tip. "Thanks, George. I'm gonna call you as soon as I know the date of the next poker night."

The card dealer nodded and left without another word, softly closing the still open door behind him.

"What are you doing up anyway? It's barely nine am," Colin asked Finn with a frown, who was helping himself to a drink. "And… are you sober?" he asked suspiciously, his eyes narrowing.

At that, Logan looked up to take a closer look at Finn as well.

"Bloody hell I am," Finn grumbled and took a deep swallow. "Lope's plane only left at fucking six in the morning, can you believe that? And she forced me to bring her to the airport. With all that driving I could hardly go get myself blasted but you can be sure I'll rectify this impossible situation right now!" he declared and gulped down the rest of his drink, reaching already for a refill.

Logan and Colin exchanged a look and Colin nodded at Logan. They had a fairly good guess why Finn was in this particularly bad mood.

"How's my favorite sister of yours?" Logan asked nonchalantly.

And sure enough, Finn spurted out the source of his unhappiness. "She's marrying that frosh-eating, sweet-tongued Frenchman of hers! Can you believe that?"

"So Jean finally popped the question? Good for her! Congrats, man!" Colin cheered and went over to give Finn an encouraging slap on the back.

Finn glared at him. "What's there to congratulate, mate? She's forever stuck in that bloody cheese and snake country now!"

"Finn, may I remind you that we're not in the Middle Ages anymore? Her living in France doesn't mean you won't get to see her anymore," Logan reasoned. "After all, she's living there for three years now and you usually see each other at least once every two months."

"Yeah, it's not as if any of you lack the money or the planes to quickly hop to Paris or New York," Colin added.

"But…"

"And we all know that Jean worships the ground Lope walks on, otherwise she wouldn't have looked twice at him, nor would we have let him. He's good to her and she loves him and I'm sure you want her to be happy, right?" Logan interrupted Finn quickly.

Finn's face fell. "Yeah, but…"

"See? So we should celebrate this great news! Perhaps not right now but definitely once I'm back from my trip," Logan interrupted him again.

"Well…"

"When's the wedding? Is it in France or here in the States? We're invited of course, aren't we?" Colin interrupted the Australian's protest this time.

"Yeah. In the summer, mid-June, Camarque," Finn answered grudgingly.

"Hey that's great! You know, if we're there anyway, we could spend the whole summer over in Europe. It's been a while since we spent our vacation there," Colin suggested, his tiredness from before now completely gone. "France, Britain, the beautiful beaches of Spain, the hot Italian girls licking their gellatino in Rome, partying through in Amsterdam, going to one of the big car races in Germany, doing a little sailing tour up on Norway's coast…"

"Whoa, Colin, I think we get the idea," Logan stopped his rambling friend.

"But it's a great idea, isn't it?" Colin insisted.

Finn frowned. "Hmm. Could be a blast," he admitted grudgingly.

Logan nodded. Yeah. That idea sure had some potential. They had tried to come up with a good plan for their summer vacation for a while now and so far, Colin's idea for Europe sure was the best of them. Hmm. Perhaps he could convince Rory to tag along with them, she seemed to like Europe. He was sure Finn and Colin wouldn't mind. And…

His thoughts came to an abrupt stop.

What the hell was he thinking? They didn't bring girls along on their vacation trips. It would totally kill the fun of picking up girls at every port, so to speak. Free as a bird, not having to worry about a girl's safety, not being tied down, and not having to go shopping endless hours in the big cities… the reasons for not bringing girls along on their trips could go on and on forever.

But…

No. No buts. It was ridiculous. Who knew if he and Rory would still be togeth… have their stringless agreement going on in the summer? It was ages away after all and the idea that he would be still as interested in his Ace then as he was right now was simply hilarious. Yeah, they were good together, if their kisses were any indicator, but it wasn't as if this was something lasting. They were friends with benefits.

Weren't they?

"Ugh, let's discuss this again once I'm not so sadly sober and can actually think straight," Finn grunted and plopped down on the sofa where Rory had been sleeping during the night. "This weekend was simply disturbing."

Colin snickered. "Yeah? Try to have your father tell you that it's highly possible you're going to be a big brother soon whereas you heatedly suggest to him to finally get himself fixed if he absolutely had to whore around."

Finn's head snapped up to stare at Colin with wide eyes. "What?"

Colin nodded. "Yeah. Apparently, Dad knocked up his latest secretary. Oh, and he's divorcing again, because of obvious reasons I think."

Finn just continued to stare at him. Finally, he frowned. "Is it for sure?"

"No," Colin sighed and looked over to Logan, his face brightening.

"But I have to admit, Logan here had a much more adventurous and interesting weekend than either one of us," he said with a wink in Logan's direction.

"Uh, Colin, I really don't think now's the time…"

"You see, I'm sure you're as happy as I am to hear that he and the lady of his heart finally went past this tiring dancing-around-each-other business and moved their relationship to a higher level," Colin simply continued, ignoring Logan's protest.

Finn's eyes grew wider and his stare moved from Colin to Logan. "Reporter Girl?"

Colin nodded. "Who else? And the best of it all, it seems as if _Rory_ was the one in the end who initiated said next step."

"Seriously?" Finn frowned.

"Yeah, though I fear all's not perfect yet in paradise," Colin dramatically continued his tale. "You see, somehow those two idiots…"

"Hey!" Logan protested, giving Colin a death glare.

"… got the harebrained idea of casual dating," Colin finished, unfazed by Logan's protest.

Finn's frown deepened and again he looked from one of his friend to the other. "What?"

"No strings. Friends with benefits. A little…"

"Yeah, yeah," Finn stopped Colin's elaboration and fixed his eyes on Logan. "How in the hell did you manage to get Rory to agree to that bullshit?" he asked, not too friendly.

Logan frowned. "For your information, _I_ explained to her in detail why dating each other wasn't such a great idea. It was _her_ who then launched herself into convincing me to no strings."

Finn's eyebrows drew together at that but he said nothing, not that he would have had much chance for that anyway as Colin was eager to tell Finn the rest of the story.

"Oh. But wait, it gets much better! You see, the two lovebirds decided to celebrate their newly found sort of a relationship by sneaking back to one of the dressing rooms, in the Windsor Club might I add, where things got a lot heated up and well, a bit carried away," Colin said, starting to grin widely.

Once again, Finn's eyes fixed on Logan with a disapproving glare. "What in bloody hell were you thinking?"

"Nothing, my dear friend, I think that much is obvious or perhaps rather, that he definitely wasn't thinking with his head. But then I have to say in his defense that apparently it was Rory, our innocent Bambi girl, who was once again the initiator of this daring and not just a bit foolishly adventure of love," Colin answered for Logan. "Because, I fear, the two lovebirds were too much lost in passion to remember to lock the door," he added with a wicked grin.

Okay, that was it. Logan was going to kill Colin.

Finn's eyes widened. "Oh, no!"

"Oh, yes! And who do you think happens to walk in on the young couple?" Colin asked, making a dramatic pause.

Logan groaned while Finn eagerly sat up, his eyes hanging on Colin's lips now.

"Rory's mother," Colin let the bomb drop.

"No!" Finn exclaimed with a gasp.

Colin nodded, his grin growing. "And hot on her heels… Rory's father."

"Bloody hell!" Finn sputtered, his chin sagging down as his eyes flickered to Logan.

His death would be slow and painful, yep, that it would be.

"Not to forget the mother's boyfriend who thought it fit to give our poor bastard here a fair warning of just what was waiting for him if the apparent bear of a man ever got his hands on the pervert who dared to touch the little angel," Colin added, his eyes sparkling with gleeful delight.

Finn simply gaped at them, his speech obviously having left him, and, boy, it did need much for that to happen.

"But don't think we are finished yet with the fairytale that is our friend's eventful love life," Colin mercilessly continued. "By far not. Then you see, the only reason why our mate here is still very much alive and with all body parts intact is thanks only to none other than our girl's brave mother who single handedly had to hold back the two furious daddies from going through with their threats while our boy here could do nothing but shake in fear."

"Okay, that's going too far now, Colin. I was _not_ shaking in fear!" Logan protested darkly. He had been frozen on the spot, okay, but there was absolutely no need for those idiots to know that.

"It was only due to a small miracle that Logan got out of there, unscathed," Colin solemnly summarized – his eyes though gleaming dangerously in high amusement.

It would involve knives. And cigar burns. And worms that slowly eat up Colin alive. And a guillotine.

Slowly, Finn shook his head. "You're shitting me. You've _got_ to be shitting me," he said ghastly.

Logan sighed while Colin shook his head, grinning again. "Nope. Honest to God truth."

"Seriously?" Finn asked, staring at Logan.

Grudgingly, Logan nodded, resigned.

"You mean to tell me that you two finally hooked up, sort of, made out and then got interrupted by her mom, dad and sort of step dad?" Finn asked slowly.

Exasperated, Logan threw up his arms. "Yeah! Do I have to spell it out for you?"

Ever so slowly, Finn's confusion made way to amusement. Immense amusement. Ridiculous amusement. One could also describe it as laughing madly and outstandingly with almost rolling on the floor from laughing. "And all that on her grandparent's wedding renewal festivities?" Finn gasped, still laughing of course. "Oh, Holy Mother of God, that's just too good to be true! Why, oh, why did I have to miss _that_ show?!"

"Yeah, it's a bloody shame," Colin agreed with a deep sigh. "At least I was there for act two."

Logan's head snapped up to glare at Colin. "Colin…"

"Wait, there's more?" Finn gasped, holding his sides that were hurting from the hard laughing he was doing.

"You bet there is!"

"Really, Colin, nothing…"

"As you know, we had the poker party last night," Colin launched into the description of act two, ignoring Logan. "And after what had happened the previous day, it was no wonder that our boy here wasn't enjoying himself much, let alone winning, his mind somewhere, or should I rather say with someone else altogether. You can believe me, it wasn't a pretty sight and I was getting seriously worried when he brushed off the attempt of a beautiful vixen who as seducing him rather brusquely. Anyway, everything changed in an instant when his cell phone suddenly started to ring with an unfamiliar tune."

"Reporter Girl," Finn stated knowingly, wiping at his left eye to get rid of a tear his laughing had produced there.

And after Colin was dead and headless Logan was going to rip him apart slowly and feed his extremities to piranhas while he kept the head as a souvenir – and a warning for all others who dared to ridicule him.

"Of course," Colin agreed. "She called to ask Logan to 'hang out' with her."

"Hang out?" Finn repeated, a bit puzzled as Logan noted with slight relief.

So it wasn't just him who found that a bit strange! After all, why would anyone want to hang out after a kiss and something more which he and Rory had shared on Saturday?

"And what does our clueless boy do? He invites her over," Colin told Finn.

"To the poker game? Are you insane?" Finn asked incredulously, staring at Logan.

"Will you two stop finally!" Logan flared up. "_She_ called and asked to hang out. _She_ suggested seeing each other on the same night as the poker game. So why shouldn't I have invited her over? It's what she wanted after all!"

"Logan, you idiot, did it ever occur to you that she perhaps wanted to just see _you_? So you two could pick up where you were interrupted the day before?" Colin asked, exasperated.

Shaking his head, Logan stared at him. He couldn't be right, could he? "No Colin. She asked to hang out. Hang out is not a specific boy/girl thing it's… casual. A group thing. Not a date. If she would have wanted what you imply she would have simply… I dunno. Asked me out or something. Or would have waited for me to ask her out." He shrugged, none too happy. "She probably was just bored and wanted to go out or something and… and…"

"Yeah, Rory's oh so famous as a party girl," Colin sarcastically said.

Logan said nothing.

"Seriously, Logan, haven't you seen her face when she came in? Don't you remember how she said she probably won't stay long?" Colin shook his head. "She wasn't expecting a full party in place, Logan, let alone a poker game party."

Really? Was Colin right and Logan had busted yet another chance to finally get together with his Ace? No. He wouldn't have been able to just leave like that anyway and Rory really didn't ask to be alone with him. Logan looked at Finn, hoping to get help there. "Finn. Hanging out is casual, right?"

Finn shook his head and rubbed at his temples. "Bloody too early for this theatrics…" he murmured and with a sigh, looked up and shrugged. "Normally I'd be with you man, but…" he shrugged again. "Hell, who knows what's going on in a girl's head, let alone in that of your girl there. Could be Colin's right. He was there after all, having the luxury to watch right from the sidelines."

"Yeah, and I would actually have paid for that seat…" Colin mentioned with a grin but then frowned. "Hmm, coming to think about it I did: about five grand," he grumbled.

"Well, to see that I'd have paid a lot more," Finn remarked and looked curiously at his friends. "Soooo… and what did happen then? How long did she stay in the end? An hour? Less? And she didn't invite you in when you brought her back to her dorm?" he asked Logan with a smirk.

"Oh but, Finn, you're on the wrong train there. You see, she spent the night here…"

"What?" Finn interrupted Colin, flabbergasted.

Colin nodded. "Yeah. I, the perfect best friend of the world, thought I'd help out my lost, clueless mate here a little and suggested to Rory to take over the DJ job since Dave had so far took charge of the music, believe me that that was also self-preservation. She accepted, thank God, and soon was engrossed by her horror of Logan's terrible music collection and deeply in conversation with Dave and some other people."

"And that was enough to keep her here for all night?" Finn asked skeptically.

Before Colin could answer him, Logan chimed in, uncomfortable about what Colin might say about the rest of the night. "She offered to make a list which I let her go ahead with it . It seems that she was caught up so much in it that she forgot the time and at one time fell asleep on the couch, where she slept until perhaps an hour ago."

He frowned when he remembered her abrupt leave. He sure hoped that everything was all right with her. She should be in Stars Hollow by now. Hmm… perhaps he should call Frank and… No. He didn't want to pry on her.

"A list? What list?" Finn wanted to know with a raised eyebrow.

Still with Rory in his thoughts, Logan nodded to the pad that was still was laying on the small table beside the couch.

Finn reached for it to have a look at it, frowning. Soon though he started to grin. "Hmm. Gotta say, your girl there knows her music. She sure has a better taste than you, but then, that's easy to achieve," Finn commented and continued to go over the list – or lists. Logan hadn't looked at the pad yet. "Oh yeah, she has good taste, not that I had any doubts about that," he murmured.

When he grabbed for the pen Rory had used though, Logan frowned. "Uh Finn? What are you doing there?"

"Oh, just smoothing it out a little," Finn absentmindedly said as he scribbled something down.

Logan's frown intensified. "I don't think that's such a great idea. Something tells me she doesn't like other people messing around with her lists. She really seems to like her lists, you know?" he warned.

Not too surprising, Finn simply shrugged Logan's apprehension away. Knowing his friend, it could very well be that he would work on that list for the rest of the morning. Shaking his head, Logan moved over and took the pad and pen away from Finn.

"Hey!" Finn protested.

"Tell you what: one day, you and Ace get together and finish that list," Logan offered.

"Hmpf…" Finn grunted and then looked back at Logan and Colin. "So she only just left? Too bad. Would have loved to see her sleeping here. Probably would have knocked me out dead, but I'd have liked to see it. Damn… seems like I missed a lot this weekend," he said with a sad sigh.

"Oh you have! You should have seen how Logan tucked…"

"_Anyway_," Logan interrupted Colin with a warning glare before he looked at Finn, growing serious. "She left because she got a call from home." He frowned. "And it didn't look as if it was good news."

Immediately, Finn sobered up. "Did something happen?"

Logan shrugged. "She wouldn't tell. Just repeated over and over that she had to get home to Stars Hollow."

"Yeah. Not that we asked much questions. It was clear that she was in a hurry. Logan just managed to convince her to let Frank drive her and already, she was gone," Colin nodded.

"You lend her Frank? Good," Finn nodded, now worried about their friend as well.

Uncomfortable, Logan turned away from them. "Yeah, well, her car's at the dealer and she needed a ride," he said noncommittally. Though he had to admit that part of him was glad that she didn't have her car. He wouldn't have wanted her to drive in the state she had been in after that damn phone call.

"At the dealer? They so rip you off there!" Both, Finn and Colin exclaimed simultaneously.

Logan looked back at them and shrugged. "Hey, don't look at me! I was as unbelieving as you guys."

"It probably says in the contract she has to bring the car to the dealer," Colin remarked with a dark frown.

The guys looked at each other and shook their head simultaneously. "Girls…"

* * *

By late afternoon, Logan's suite looked as if there hadn't been a poker party all night long. He had gotten in a few hours of sleep and his bag for the trip with has father was packed, along with the backpack containing the work he should do while being away along with a couple of books to read for fun and his i-pod.

Logan was ready to go, even though he still had perhaps an hour left before he had to leave. As Frank still hadn't returned he perhaps would have to drive himself to the airport and leave his baby there in the parking lot. Not something he really anticipated, but then again, right now that left him pretty much with no other choice.

He was more busy with worrying about Rory. A few times he had almost called Frank to ask about her, but in the end had always restrained himself. But fuck, he really wanted to know if she was okay and preferably before he had to leave.

With a sigh he tried to concentrate back on the paragraph he was trying to read for thirty minutes now. Somehow the intrigues in the Korean War couldn't really capture his interest today. Groaning, he put the book to the side and flipped onto his back to stare up to the ceiling.

Why didn't she call? Didn't she know how worried he was, after the way she had left this morning? And Frank! Frank was his personal driver for almost ten years now and Logan believed that there was actually sympathy involved on both sides. Hell, Frank knew Logan probably a lot better than his father did. Couldn't he imagine that Logan would like an update on them? Besides, Frank knew that he was supposed to take Logan to the airport later on. Shouldn't he at least call to confirm if he could make it or not?

Logan stared at his cell phone with a frown, willing it to ring.

No such luck.

He was startled though, when there was suddenly a knock on his door. Quickly, he got up to go open the door. Perhaps it was Ace or Frank, finally!

And sure enough, there stood Rory, her arms crossed in front of her, having changed into jeans and a sweater and looking more or less okay, if perhaps a bit tired.

Logan couldn't quite remember when he had ever felt so relieved in his entire life like in that very moment. Not that he had any intention of letting her know that.

"Hey Ace, how you doing?" he therefore said, a lot more casual than he felt.

"Fine," she said, rather curtly.

Wondering a bit about the shortness of her reply, he turned away and headed into his living room. "Come on in," he invited her in.

"Uhm, Logan, wait," Rory called after him but did follow him in, uncrossing her arms. Only to point towards the door again though. "No, I can't stay, I'm just returning Frank."

Logan turned to face her, hands in his pockets to resist the incredibly strong urge to pull her into his arms. They didn't have time for that right now. "Returning Frank?" he asked, a bit amused.

Rory nodded, her arms crossed in front of her once again. "And the limo. Thanks very much."

Why the hell was she so formal all of a sudden? But right now, there were way more important things to get to know first. "Everything okay back home?" he asked softly, sincerely.

A shadow flew over Rory's face but vanished again immediately. "Okay enough. It was good that I went," she said quietly and took a deep breath, her eyes meeting his. "Thank you very much for your help," she thanked him.

Logan frowned slightly. Her words sounded sincere but her tone and body language… "You're very formal tonight," he observed.

"What?" Rory asked, confused.

"Just your tone. It's very formal," he told her.

She looked down at her feet. "Well… that's how it is," she said shortly and looked back to Logan. "And, I fed Frank a nice sandwich, so he's all good to go," she added in a very businesslike tone.

Hmm, this wasn't getting them anywhere, Logan thought grudgingly. Time to change the topic. "You know, you ended up being extremely lucky for me, Ace," he told her with a small smile.

"Is that so?" Rory replied, her voice chilling.

What the hell was wrong with her? Logan nodded. "I took Robert for everything he had, plus everything I owed him from last time," he told her smugly. "You should come to all these things," he added. Oh yeah, he would very much like that, he thought, his smile widening.

"Yeah, _kiddo_, maybe I should," she answered dryly.

"What?" Logan asked with a half laugh. Oh boy, it looked as if she hadn't appreciated him calling her kiddo at all, from the way she had just emphasized this endearment.

She looked away again but then turned her head back to him to look him straight into the eyes. "Hey, did it ever occur to you when I called to ask you if you wanted to hang out that I meant that it should just be the two of us?" she asked as if that must have been obvious.

Damn! Colin had been right! Damn it! And now what?

Quickly, he decided to go with the truth. He would not let himself get blamed for this! "I actually wasn't sure. The whole thing was a little vague," he answered her, growing serious.

"It wasn't vague," she protested with a frown.

"No, hanging out's a little vague," he insisted. "It's not a specific boy/girl thing," he told her, heaving his shoulders.

"Well, I can tell you that I wasn't expecting to be Fanny Brice to your Nicky Arnstein," Rory informed him, giving him a look.

Normally, Logan would have smiled at her reference, but right now he was too preoccupied to clear up this thing. Now that they finally had gotten together he'd be damned if he let something like such a small misunderstanding ruin it. "But I already had this game going and I couldn't just kick everybody out, so my choice is to say no and not see you at all or say yes and do it the way we did it," he pointed out to her with slightly raised eyebrows.

"Well, I wasn't expecting a group," she stated, still being stubborn about it.

"So… I should have said no, meaning I wouldn't see you at all?" Logan summarized. "I wanted to see you," he declared, laying the cards open onto the table.

"Well, that's nice. I wanted to see you too," Rory answered. "I just thought it would be a little more intimate," she informed him defensively.

"Intimate?" Logan repeated, raising his eyebrow.

"You know what I mean," she grumbles, avoiding his eyes, only to give him a meaningful look at the end.

"So the only time we can see each other is to have sex?" he asked, being provocative.

Sure, usually he wouldn't mind such a thing at all – but with Rory it was different. He wanted more than just sex. He wanted at least her friendship along with it. And maybe even more.

"No Logan, that's not what I'm saying!" she protested vehemently, her arms finally uncrossing to emphasize what she was saying.

"That's what I'm taking from this," Logan told her, but found himself pleased by her reaction.

Good. Not just sex.

"Well, don't take that! That's not what I'm saying," she told him insistently.

Okay, he believed her. "So, we can see each other under all kinds of conditions. Alone, in a group," he clarified, smiling surreptitiously.

"Yeah," she agreed.

"Good. Last night happened to be a group thing," he continued, his smile growing.

"Right," she agreed again, a bit annoyed by now.

"So I don't see the problem," Logan stated, ignoring her annoyance.

"Yeah. No… I guess there really wasn't a problem," she grudgingly admitted.

"Glad we cleared that up," Logan finished, smiling victoriously.

"Yeah, me too," she said, looking down and stuffing her fingers into her pockets.

God, Logan loved to outmaneuver her – she was so adorable whenever she lost an argument. But he was smart enough to not dwell further on on that. Actually, he thought it was high time for them to get straight once and for all. He stepped closer to her, which made her to look back up at him.

"Now, I'm going out of town for a few days, but I was going to give you a call to set something up for when I get back, but you called me first," he told her, wanting her to know that he was as eager to see her again as she seemed to have been to see him.

And indeed, upon hearing that she stepped herself a bit closer to him. "Right."

"I'm back next Saturday. It's the first night I'm back. Want to," he shrugged, smiling down at her. "I don't know, what are the kids saying these days? Hang out?" he suggested, his smile growing bigger.

She rolled her eyes but smiled now as well. "I'm never listening to the breakfast cereal girls again," she murmured wryly.

"What?" Logan asked with a laugh. The breakfast cereal girls? Who did she mean?

But she shook her head and gazed up at him. "Nothing. I'm free," she answered his previous question.

"No group this time," Logan made sure.

"No group this time," she agreed.

"Good, so next Saturday," he settled, elated by this turn of events. Yes! They finally had a date, a clear date, without all that uncertainty crap they had going on so far. His eyes locked with her, he closed the gap between them and kissed her again, finally, after almost two days, and it felt even better than last time, despite the fact that he still kept his hands firmly in his pockets. If he wouldn't, there'd be no way she was leaving this dorm anytime soon again. And as much as their kiss made him want her again, he didn't want it to happen now, like that. Not to mention that he had to leave soon. Fuck. Slowly, he eased up the kiss until they parted. "Thanks for feeding Frank," he said softly, once he had found back his speech.

"You're welcome," she replied softly, their eyes never leaving the other.

"And I promise not to call you kiddo again, I kinda picked up on that sarcasm from before," he promised her with a smile.

"There are just so many other things you could call me," she responded, blushing.

"That's an opening," Logan agreed enthusiastically. Boy would it be fun to find something she'd let him call her.

In answer, she leaned up to kiss him again and Logan was only too pleased to oblige her. This time, their kiss was ever so much more sweet and promising, almost tender. It was a new sort of kiss for Logan, one he definitely liked very much.

"Bye," she whispered, after she had pulled back from their kiss. With a last blinding smile at Logan, she quickly turned away from him and left.

"Bye Ace," he said as softly and watched her vanish through the door, taking a deep breath, noticing that her scent was still lingering in the air, causing him to smile goofily.

His Ace. And next Saturday, they were finally going on a highly official date. Just her and him, all insecurities and misunderstandings put aside and both knowing what they wanted: each other. And he was pretty sure that this time, it wouldn't end up with him bringing her home and then leaving to go home alone and frustrated. Actually, if he had his way, this date would go on way past Saturday night. And Sunday morning. And Sunday afternoon. Actually, he was determined to try to get her to let this date go on at least until Monday morning.

"Saturday," he whispered, full of anticipation for this big, important day.

* * *

TBC!

_(Author's note: Uff!!! Finally! There was a time I thought I was never going to finish this as it turned out that writing the elaborated version of this episode was harder than I had thought. How the heck did Logan manage to get Rory to stay? I mean, it had been so obvious how disappointed she had been and how uncomfortable she felt there and then she spent the night there? Really… And yes, I know, a major part of this chapter was used to basically tell the same story over three times. But first of all, it's just too good a story to not tell it over and over and second I hope that I managed to make it worthwhile every time around. Ah, and now I can finally turn my attention to one of my favorite episodes though I've got to say I'm not looking especially forward to find an explanation how they ended up having a group thing once again. But I have the morning after I can do and boy, am I looking forward to that part. So, a little patience, and soon you'll find out if Logan managed to drag out their date to one mega-long-date! And in the meanwhile, please keep me going with all those wonderful reviews you're sending me and that I love so much. Thank you, each and every one of you!)_


	10. Pillow Talk

**Chapter 10: Pillow Talk**

**(Jews and Chinese Food)**

"The numbers may have risen slightly; fact is, though, that the production has gone back."

"I think we're targeting the wrong group of people. We have to think younger, hipper."

"But we can't forget our regular subscribers! If we simply change…"

Bored out of his mind, Logan listened with half an ear to the discussions. It wasn't as if he hadn't heard this before. Year after year, they had more or less the same discussion. It needed to be done more for the young people. The progress or regress of numbers and production. Was it wise to focus more on the local or more on the international news? How could they get in more advertisements without reducing the paper to a cheap magazine? Just how much sport and business news was not too much and boring? What new feature could bring on more readers? And so on and on. Basically, the topics were interesting and of course very important. But if you could only listen in and never contribute anything then it got old pretty fast. A tiny part of him had hoped that his father would let him contribute more this time than in previous years but he wasn't surprised that once again he was reduced to only listening and watching.

But he could definitely not wait until this meeting was over because then, these four boring days would be over and they'd head over to the airport to finally go back home to the States. And tomorrow evening, he could finally take Rory out for their first date. He had already made reservations for them in the little Italian place Rory had taken him when they had been in the city on their saving-the-day book trip. Somehow, he found it fitting to return to that place where they had ate their first meal together and gotten to know each other a bit better. Besides, the food there was excellent and he at least could be sure that Ace would get enough to eat there. Not something he could be sure of with the restaurants he usually dined at with his dates. Not to mention that he knew she would feel comfortable there whereas he could imagine that she wouldn't feel so much at ease in some of the fancy places he frequented. And above all, he wanted her to feel comfortable.

For later that evening, he wasn't quite sure what to do. So he had decided to let Rory choose, having the feeling that she would like to have a say-so in their program as well. To let them have every option open: he had placed reservations for a play, a stand-up comedy show and a concert taking place in New Haven and couple of movies he thought she might be interested in as well. Now, she just had to decide what she would want to do and more. Though he wouldn't be surprised if she suggested something else entirely. With his Ace, everything was possible and that was just one thing that attracted him so much to her.

And then he was assured that Lanny wouldn't be home this weekend, a guarantee that they would have at least one place where they could be undisturbed for a certain span of time.

Oh yeah, he couldn't wait to finally get back home to his Ace and their date.

It was the only thing that kept him from going up the walls with boredom.

"Okay, gentlemen, I think that's all for now. I expect a report of this meeting by tomorrow, Keith. And a draft of the new features within a week," his father said, standing up.

Keith Jamison, manager of the London branch of Huntzberger Media Corporation nodded and stood up as well.

Suppressing a sigh of relief, Logan stood up also.

Finally!

And now, back home!

Impatiently, he waited for the last of the people to leave the conference room. Once he and his father were alone, his father turned towards him. "So… what do you think?"

Surprised, Logan looked up with a slight frown. What did he think about what? Since his father didn't elaborate his question, he shrugged in the end. "I think the meeting went well. The new feature about the party scene should get you some more young readers, as long as Keith isn't so stupid to give the story to one of the usual staff."

Seemingly deeply in thought, his father gathered together his papers. "Who else then?"

Logan's frown deepened. What did his father want to achieve with these questions? He wanted home, not play twenty questions! But he played along, for now. "I don't know the staff well enough but I'd say any one of the interns or, if there's no one suitable, go and hire a freelancer for now. If it's a success, we can always hire that person full time."

Absentmindedly, his father nodded, but asked nothing further. "Okay, let's go."

That's what Logan had been waiting for like forever. He gave a short nod and headed outside. His suitcase was already waiting in the car, so apart from the few words of goodbye they had to say, there stood nothing between him and going home anymore. Perhaps half an hour later, the limousine picked Logan and his father up to drive them out to the airstrip where their jet was already waiting for them. They didn't talk with each other, his father reading some documents and Logan trying to concentrate on his Business Management book in order to get in some studying for the exams in a couple of weeks.

But honestly, he had a hard time concentrating. Too often his thoughts drifted towards tomorrow and his date with Ace. He mentally went over the details time and time again to check if he hadn't forgotten anything. Once back home, he would have to do a little shopping so he could get his dorm room and himself ready. Not much, thank God, otherwise he would have had to ask Colin or Finn to make a few errands for him and that was something he definitely wanted to avoid. And he was still not sure if it was better to take her out in his Porsche or if it would be wiser to call Frank and let him drive them. Basically, he wanted them to finally be alone so he tended more towards using his own car. But depending on what they would do after dinner, it would be more practical to use the limo service. Drinking wasn't an issue this time. Tomorrow night, he wanted a clear head. He wanted every single moment with his Ace to be without any intrusion, interruption, interference.

Well, as clear as his head could manage to be with Ace close to him.

It may have been already four days since he had last seen her, kissed her – but it sure had done nothing to his self control where she was concerned. But hopefully, after this weekend, it wouldn't be so bad anymore.

God, he hoped so. He wasn't sure how much longer he could live in this constant state of need.

Not just for sex, though that undoubtedly was a big part. But, as he had had to learn over the past few days, there were many other needs in relation to Rory. The need to see her again, to talk with her. It had taken him until Wednesday night to give in and call her, just so he could hear her voice again. He had used the excuse of wanting to settle things for Saturday, well, not really an excuse, but sure not the main reason for his call either. From then on they had talked some more, about the latest craziness of Paris and Doyle, about her classes, about Colin and Finn being Colin and Finn, a short discussion about the use of golf sneakers, about the first few episodes of 'The Office' he had managed to watch before he had to leave for London and a million other things. It had been a long call. And another novelty for Logan.

Never before had he simply talked like that over the phone with a girl he dated. He'd settle their next rendezvous or cancel on it, he'd have a brief, very suggestive conversation with her, but just random talking and enjoying it? Nah, never.

Not that that surprised him anymore. He had come to terms with the fact that Rory simply was different from any other girl he had ever dated before. That she was full of surprises. And he couldn't wait to find out even more, to get even more surprised by her. After all, how many more surprises could she have in store for him?

He wasn't sure, but his gut told him that with his Ace, there might be quite a lot in store for him still.

"How did you like it here in London?"

Pulled out of his thoughts, Logan looked over to his father. "Hmm?"

An impatient frown appeared between his father's eyebrows. He hated to repeat himself. "London. How'd you like it here?"

Puzzled by the strange question, Logan shrugged. "Okay, I guess."

"Our business here is doing fairly well," his father mentioned.

"Looks like it," Logan nodded, keeping his eyes on his father. What had gotten into him all of a sudden? They didn't do small talk, never had, and never would.

"I thought that maybe, London would be the right place for you to get into the business, once you graduated. A bit of time away would do you some good and I believe, with the way things are going here, London would be perfect," his father said, his eyes resting on Logan.

Frowning, Logan looked away. He knew that it was expected of him to do several 'internships' after graduation in order to learn the ropes of the business. A year here, a few months there, something like that. He didn't really want to think about that right now, after all, graduation was still so far away, way more than a year. How was he supposed to say now if he agreed that London would be a fine place to start his active involvement in the family business or not?

Again, he shrugged. "Sure, maybe. Looks cool," he answered, trying to evade the question.

His father nodded, obviously pleased with Logan's answer that left Logan a bit uncomfortable. In his experience, nothing that pleased his father meant anything good for him. Before something else could be said though, the cell phone of his father rang and relieved, Logan looked back down to the page he was trying to read.

He managed to read perhaps one paragraph before an agitated "What?" of his father distracted him again. Curious, he looked over to his father who wore a deep frown.

Looked like bad news.

"No, no, I'm already on my way. Try to get to the bottom of this mess but don't do anything until I get there," his father barked into the phone and ended the call, obviously angry with something. Before Logan could ask what was wrong, he dialed a phone number. "Alfred? Change of plan. Instead of New York, we're heading to Los Angeles. Do what's necessary," he ordered and closed the phone.

Alarmed, Logan stared at his father. Los Angeles? No, no, no! They didn't have time for a detour to L.A.! He had little enough time to get back to New Haven in time for his date with Ace. No way could he afford a side trip to L.A.!

"Dad? L.A.?" he asked. Trying not to sound too panicked.

"Some idiot there is suing us. If he gets through with it, it will cost us millions," his father informed him darkly. "I've got to get there and see how much substance this lawsuit has."

Okay, Logan could see why this news angered his father. He still hadn't time to go to L.A. "That's annoying. Well, in that case I'll better see that I get a ticket on the next regular flight," he said, reaching for his cell.

"What?" his father asked, frowning.

Logan met his father's eyes. "To get back to New York. If you go to L.A…"

"You're coming with me," his father simply said, looking back to his papers.

Fuck!

'Okay, stay calm,' Logan ordered himself, knowing that he wouldn't gain anything if he lost it now. "Dad, I can't. I have plans for tomorrow. And like I already told you, the exams are in a couple of weeks and I really need to get back to Yale. So…"

But his father shook his head. "I'll talk to the Dean, I'm sure they won't mind giving you a little extra time, should you really need it. After all, we don't know how long this will actually take. But this is an excellent opportunity for you to see how we handle such things, as a nuisance this ridiculous lawsuit is."

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

"But tomorrow is really important f…" Logan tried to reason.

His father gave a short snort. "I'm sure you can reschedule."

Logan shook his head. "No, I really…"

"Logan, you're coming, and that's final," his father interrupted him again, sending him a stern look.

Seething, Logan gritted his teeth together and turned his head away. Damn it all to hell! There was no way out of it and he knew that. Or rather said, he knew his father well enough to know just how boneheaded he could get, once he had set his mind. And once again his family had successfully ruined his plans with Ace. What was it with his family interfering with his dates with Rory? Now he had to cancel on her, for the second time in a row. God, he just hoped she wouldn't think that this had been his idea, that he had lost interest in seeing her. Nothing could be farther from the truth!

Shit, shit, shit.

How he hated his life sometimes.

He'd have to call her and soon. But definitely not right now. He'd wait until he was in the plane and could excuse himself and find a place from where he could phone her without his father hearing every word. That's what he had planned anyway, but certainly not for him to find the words to cancel on her. Quite the contrary.

He really hated his life.

* * *

"You've got three minutes tops or I'm going to be too late for my dinner with my mom which she won't let me forget for the rest of the evening, reciting awful jokes and suggesting harebrained speculations why I was too late and believe me, you don't want me to have to suffer through that," Rory answered the phone, sounding a little out of breath.

Despite the bad news he had to tell her, Logan smiled. "I guess I don't."

"Right. But it's good you called now so I can grill the goddess of the right outfit for the right occasion for the perfect company with which I'll surprise you tomorrow. But of course for that I need information like how formal my attire is required, how warm do I have to dress, do I need to move much in it or is a skintight leopard bodysuit the right thing for tomorrow," Rory fired through the phone.

For a moment, Logan was frozen as a vision of his Ace in a skintight leopard bodysuit came into focus and he let out a soft curse. "Now you're just cruel, Ace."

"Why ever?" her voice floated over, innocently.

"Careful, Ace. You don't want to tease the tiger," he warned her, his voice have taken on a slightly rougher tone.

"Tiger? I thought it's a wolf?" she gave back and he could hear the smile in her voice.

Letting out a little laugh, Logan shook his head. "Nope, definitely a tiger," he assured her, but then grew serious. "Listen, Ace, about tomorrow…"

"What? You actually going to give me some information? I'm shocked!" she gasped. "Are you sure you're all right? Perhaps the height making you a bit light headed?" she continued to tease him.

"Cute, Ace, really cute," Logan said and sighed. God, how much he hated to say what he had to say. "But I fear there might be a slight problem."

There was a slight pause before Rory answered, the teasing gone from her voice. "And what problem would that be?"

"Oh well, just the slight problem that the plane's headed to L.A. and not New York," Logan told her, unable to keep the bitterness out of his voice. "There's some problem with our branch there and Dad insisted on me accompanying him. I tried to get out of it, really, but he wouldn't hear any of it."

This time, the pause was longer. "So… no date tomorrow?" Rory asked, resigned, and, if Logan was correct, also a bit disappointed.

"No, I fear not," Logan answered softly.

"I guess such things happen. No can do, right?" Rory said after a moment and Logan cringed at the tone in her voice.

She did believe that this was totally against his will as well, didn't she?

"Hey, rain check, okay?" he asked quietly. "It's not like we just forget about it, we just postpone it. Right?" he wanted to know after a short moment.

"Sure," Rory said with a sigh but Logan was pretty sure he could hear her cheering up a bit again. "Already have a date in mind?" she asked.

Puh, that had been close.

"I'm not sure how long this stupid business trip will take, could be a few days, could be another week," Logan thought out loud. Resigned, he finally shook his head. "I don't want to reschedule for something else and then have to cancel again. How about this: I'll call on you the minute I'm back and we'll schedule something for the next possible time? This way we perhaps can actually make it to our date, not giving anything else a chance to intervene," he added darkly.

This really sucked.

Rory gave a dry chuckle. "Wouldn't bet too much money on it, Mister." There was some commotion in the background and Logan could hear Rory call out she'd come right away. "That's Mom. Gotta go. So I'll hear from you?"

Disappointed that their time together was already over, Logan nodded. "Definitely. So you and your leopard bodysuit better be ready," he told her, his voice falling back to a teasing tone.

"You wish!" Rory laughed and hung up.

Slowly, Logan put the phone away and closed his eyes, the image of leopard Ace appearing again. He grinned.

Oh yeah, he definitely wished.

* * *

To his chagrin, the situation in Los Angeles wasn't resolved within a few days. As it turned out, the lawsuit had more than just a little substance and in the end, his father had grudgingly decided to agree to a settlement. The man suing Huntzberger Media Corporation would not pursue his lawsuit and in return, he'd get a lot of money. Logan should have been able to tell his father that this would be the end result anyway right from the first day he saw just what it was all about, but no, his father had of course tried to find some way to get around paying even a cent. His father didn't like loosing.

By the time they had agreed on the settlement with the guy, it was Friday evening and a whole week had passed, filled with more boring meetings with lawyers, the manager of their L.A. branch, the reporter who had given the grounds for the lawsuit and who no longer worked for them, nor for anyone else if his father had any say so about it and long conferences with the guy and his lawyer when they were negotiating the deal.

To say that he had enough would be an understatement. He wasn't sure what his father's plans were now, all he knew was that he was headed home. So he had left his father a short note the very next morning and then had headed out to the airport where he took the very first flight out to New York, not having been able to find one to New Haven directly. He was tired and his nerves, after two straight weeks with his father, were pretty much bare.

But it was over now and the moment he stepped out of the security zone and saw, to his surprise, Finn and Colin already waiting for him, he felt energized.

"Man, you have no idea how good it's to see you two guys," Logan said sincerely, meaning every word. "But how come you two are here?"

Finn hooked his arm around Logan's neck and stretched out his other. "Now that the lady of my heart, the beautiful, wonderful Rosemary, has finally agreed to a date with me, I of course had to buy myself a new outfit in honor of this extraordinary, world shifting event to look my absolute best, not that there's much to achieve anymore with the perfect looks I have and you know that nothing will touch this smooth skin than the best from the best shops in the best cities of this world and New York was the closest."

"And since you told us yesterday when you'd be arriving we thought we would as well come and pick you up," Colin added and gave him a long look. "Though have no qualms, buddy, my main reason is that I need you to assure me that I'm not yet completely lost in Finn-land. Never, ever again leave me alone for two weeks straight with Finn, got that? I'm not sure how much of my sanity has survived."

Logan gave him a sympathetic look. "Was it that bad?"

"You have no idea," Colin groaned. "It was barely bearable before Rosemary agreed to go out with him, well sort of, but ever since then? I was very tempted to let the nice men in white simply have him."

"I'd be offended by remarks like that, but today, nothing can dim the glory of this formidable day!" Finn exclaimed, hopping a few steps forward and stretching out his arms.

"See?" Colin pointed out, exasperated.

Grinning, Logan nodded, glancing at all the passengers who threw from curious to mistrustful looks at Finn's way.

"Uh, Finn? Want to tell me about your big plans for tonight?" Logan asked, trying to get Finn back to Earth. "Car's waiting outside?" Logan asked Colin more quietly.

Colin nodded and took the lead while Finn bounced back to be at Logan's side. "No big plans, that's the big plan, mate," he told Logan.

Surprised, Logan raised an eyebrow. "What? No big plans? No fireworks, no hired performance group, no backstage passes to her favorite singer or group, no little meeting with her movie idol?"

"Rosemary's not yet convinced to really go out with Finn," Colin mentioned dryly.

"Smart girl," Logan remarked with a chuckle.

"Save yourself the chuckle," Colin said, looking meaningful at him. "While I tend to agree with you, it changed when I heard the conditions on just how she'll agree to go out with him, sort of."

Getting a sense of foreboding, Logan frowned. "Which are?"

"She wants to go out in a group," Colin told him.

Now it was Logan's turn to groan. "Oh, no…"

"Oh, yes. So we decided we go dine at the China Palace in New Haven. Me and Rosemary, Colin and Juliet, who is Rosemary's best friend I think, and you and Reporter Girl," Finn enthusiastically told Logan.

Logan came to an abrupt stop. "Uh… no," he told Finn, shaking his head.

"Come on, it will be fun! It will be great! It will be the night of all nights! It will…" Finn tried to convince Logan.

"Okay, let me think again… No!" Logan told him firmly.

"I don't see why not!" Finn grumbled, glaring at Logan. "Here, your best friend begs you on his knees to do him a tiny little favor and you want to refuse him that?"

Logan shook his head, refusing to let himself be shoved into the guilt trip. "Nothing against you, Finn, but I had two _very_ long weeks. And I promised Ace that next time we meet, it will not be a group thing. Since I already had to cancel on her last Saturday, I will for sure not show up and break my promise." He looked into his friend's eyes and smiled. "And as you always were such a big supporter of Ace and me going out I'm sure you'll understand why I don't want to screw it up – again, right, buddy?"

Judging from the pout on Finn's face, Logan guessed that he had won this argument.

Sadly though, the victory didn't stand for long.

"Now, not that I would want to drive a wedge into your blooming relationship with Rory," Colin said casually. "But may I ask if you and Rory have already made plans for this evening?"

Logan threw him a dirty look.

"Actually, did you two set a date for tonight at all?" Colin asked further, the smile on his face very self-satisfactory.

Logan glared as Finn cheered up again. "Yeah, buddy, have you?"

Still glaring at Colin, the traitor, Logan grinded his teeth. "No, not yet. I was about to, though."

"Oh, well, then it's no problem at all!" Finn exclaimed happily. "You'll just tell her that we all go out together and she'll be okay then. And if not, just let me talk with my Love, I'm sure when I explain to her just how world-saving important it is that she comes along, she'll understand."

"Exactly," Colin agreed. "And if she already has other plans, I mean, it is a Saturday night after all, right? Well, if she has, I'm sure you'll find someone else in your little black book to call and who'd just love to come with us, right, Logan?" When Logan said nothing, he smiled mischievously. "I mean, you're only casual with her after all, so there's no problem with the two of you going out with others, isn't it?"

"Yeah, though I'd really prefer if Reporter Girl comes along. She's a real girl you know, I bet she can help me convince Rosemary that I'm the man of her dreams," Finn jumped in with a smile as well.

His jaw clenching, Logan shouldered his bag and marched off.

Bastards.

As if he had needed a reminder that Ace may perhaps have plans for this night already. And if she really had, then they could forget about him coming with them. But he didn't think that she had. After all, the exams had almost begun and the way he knew her, she'd barricade herself in her room to study, study, study. Hadn't she? Still… she seemed to have been okay with going out with him. So perhaps, if another guy had asked her out…

His hands flexed in the urge to ball into fists.

"Relax, Logan, if you want my opinion, I don't think she has other plans at all," Colin said quietly, catching up with him. "Every time we saw her these past two weeks she had her nose buried deep into a book. Or was downing coffee to quickly return to the open book in front of her. Actually, I'm not sure she even remembered that there are actually two genders existing right now. If she has plans then I bet it is to stay home and study."

Calming down considerably, Logan looked at Colin, held his eyes for a moment, and then, looked away again to spot the limo that would drive them. "Thanks a lot for not letting me get out of this thing tonight," he said sarcastically.

Colin gave a short laugh. "What? And suffer through this evening alone? Sorry, mate, I love you, but if it is me alone with Finn, his fling of the moment and the fling's best friend who's supposed to be my blind date, or having you along to suffer with me, then it's clear where my loyalty lies."

Logan sighed and looked back to Finn who was having fun explaining to an old tourist couple the way to Liberty Island. From what he could hear, Finn was sending them through New Jersey instead of sending them to Battery Park in Manhattan to take the ferry. Oh, well, the taxi driver will have a field day. He glanced back to Colin and shook his head.

Sometimes he really asked himself just what kind of friends he had.

* * *

Logan pondered during almost the entire ride back home whether he should call Rory ahead or not. In the end he decided he would just show up at her doorstep. After all, she could say no to him on the phone rather easily. But if he stood in front of her, she would have a harder time saying no to him.

He was, after all, pretty good in convincing people to do things they initially perhaps didn't want to do.

So, after arriving back on campus, he quickly went up to his dorm to put away his suitcase, took a quick shower and dressed into some fresh clothes while Colin and Finn did something similar and went to go get the girls. When he rejoined them they were already waiting by the limo that would drive them around for this evening.

"Logan, this is Rosemary," Finn introduced the redhead at his side, then nodded over to a thin, blond girl standing on Rosemary's other side. "And this is her friend Juliet. Ladies, this is my mate Logan here."

"Nice to meet you," Logan nodded, taking a secret look up and down the girls. It was no wonder that Finn was so hung up on that Rosemary – she was exactly his type. Juliet… well, she was okay, actually, she no doubt looked nice – if you looked past the fact that she looked as if she would break down from hunger any moment now. Glancing at Colin's unenthusiastic face he judged that she didn't meet his friend's standard either. Great, he thought with a sigh.

"Hey, where's Rory?" Colin asked with a frown.

Logan shrugged. "I'm on my way to her dorm to go get her," he informed them. "So if you'll excuse me for a moment," he said to the girls, who nodded as he turned away to head towards Branford House.

Five minutes later he stood in front of Rory's suite. He could hear the faint sound of the TV and really hoped that Rory was the one watching. If she wasn't studying it would be a lot easier to get her to come with him. That was, if she was home at all. Sure, he had checked if her car was here, and it was, but that didn't mean that she was necessarily in her room. Shaking his head, he raised his hand and knocked at her door to put a stop to all this unnecessary doubting. Shoving his hands into his jacket, he looked down and waited for someone, hopefully her, opening the door.

When it finally opened, he was relieved to see a smiling Rory looking at him with slight surprise. "Hello stranger," he greeted her, smiling.

"Hey, you're back," she greeted back, her smile growing bigger.

"Just rolled in," he confirmed quietly, drinking in the sight of her in her tight pants, the light pink blouse and that red, tight, tie-front cardigan shrug she wore that was nicely knotted between her breasts, making sure that any guy's eyes would automatically be drawn there. He doubted she knew just how teasing her attire was, though.

And her ignorance of that fact was making her even more irresistible.

"So… How was it? Was it fun?" she asked conversationally.

He frowned. If there was something he didn't want to talk about right now then it was the two crappy weeks he had. Fun. Two weeks in close proximity to his father. Ha! "No, very dull. Let's not talk about it," he told her evadingly. "We're all going to China Palace for food. Grab your coat, let's go," he told her brusquely, thinking that this way, if he talked as if it was a fact that she was coming, she perhaps will protest less, and choose to go.

"Oh, uhm, I can't," Rory though told him, stopping him dead in his tracks to turn back to her.

"What?" he protested with a slight frown. "Sure you can. Come on. I've missed you, let me buy you a fortune cookie," he told her, annoyed. Oh, no. Was she not coming? Now that he had seen her he definitely wanted her with him, even if it was with those two lunatics he called friends and those girls.

"I kind of have company," she admitted though, making Logan's thoughts come to an abrupt halt.

She had what? Company? Company like in a friend was over or company like in a date?

"Really? Anyone I know," he wanted to know with slightly narrowed eyes and took a step forward to get a look inside – and at that company. And there was Marty, standing up from the couch and looking uncomfortable. On one hand, Logan was relieved that it was Marty. He knew that he was nothing else to Rory but a friend, so that meant that he didn't have to be really worried. "Hey, Marty. Good to see you," he greeted the guy, hoping to sound not too unfriendly.

On the other hand… It was Marty. The guy who was hopelessly in love with Rory. The guy who had badmouthed him in the pub. Sure, he had been drunk, but still… he bet that Marty hoped that this evening with Rory was more than just a friendly thing. Which in turn meant that he might try to do something with Ace.

With _Logan's_ girl.

"Uh, yeah, you too," Marty said, uncomfortably.

Logan laughed humorlessly, inwardly. Oh yeah, he'd bet that Marty was anything but happy about seeing him. And the guy was right if he thought that he had come to take Rory away. That was just what he wanted to do, now more than ever. But he knew better than to expect her to simply ditch Marty. Ace was too good a person for that. Not to mention that she thought of this loser as a friend.

That left only one option.

"Well, you come too. The more the merrier," he invited Marty along as well.

"Oh well…" Rory chirped in, sounding unsure.

Logan ignored her protest, his eyes fixed on Marty. "Come on, Marty. If you're going to be hanging with Ace like this, it's time I get to know you without a waiter's uniform on," he told him, making sure that Marty understood two things very well: First, Logan was not going anywhere, and, second, Ace was _his_ now, They may not be going out exclusively, but they were going out and they were going to kiss and sleep together and were going to spend much time with each other and Marty had no business at all in that.

Marty wouldn't be so stupid to refuse going, not now.

He looked back at Rory and his eyes softened. "Let's go," he said, briefly touching her arm before he turned to leave. "Car's waiting outside," he told them and quickly headed out, sure that they'd follow him in a bit.

Logan walked back to where the limo was parked, confident that Rory was going with them but a bit disappointed that Marty would tag along.

"Hey, where's Reporter Girl?" Finn asked with a frown when Logan joined them once again at the limo. "She didn't say no, did she? Or wasn't she home?"

"Oh, she's at home all right," Logan muttered darkly. "Had some kind of movie night going on."

"Really? Then why the sour face?" Colin asked, raising an eyebrow. His eyes went past Logan and widened, before they narrowed. "Oh, I see," he said darkly as well. "What's Margarita Marty doing with her?" he asked ominously.

"He gave her company," Logan said and turned his head to see the two coming towards him. "And Colin, please, be nice to him. I'm not a big fan of his either, but Ace thinks of him as a friend and we'll have hell to pay if we're not civil towards him."

"I don't know what you mean. I'm always civil," Colin muttered.

Finn snorted. "Yeah, right. Just don't talk to him unless spoken to, I think that's the best way to avoid a catastrophe," he said thoughtfully, sharing a glance with Logan.

Logan had just time to give a nod back and throw Colin another warning glare when Rory and Marty came up to them.

"Hey, guys," she greeted Finn and Colin cheerfully.

Finn grinned at her. "Hey there, love. I'm so glad to see you! You've got to help me!"

"I do?" she asked with a smile.

Finn nodded eagerly. "In here," he said, patting the roof of the limo, "sits the beautiful Rosemary, lady of my heart and dreams. The problem is, she's not yet convinced that I'm God's gift to women and that I'm the man of her dreams. You gotta help me convince her!" he begged her, his eyes pleading at her.

Rory laughed and patted his arm. "Okay! Don't worry, we'll see to it that she sees the error of her thinking," she assured Finn.

"Well, if we'll be standing out here in the cold for much longer, we'll all freeze our asses," Colin muttered and opened the door, gesturing for Rory to get in, which she did quickly, probably thankful to get out from the cold into the warmth of the limo..

Logan nodded for Marty to get in after her. He didn't want to, but he figured that he would have to hold back for now. Marty really knew no one but Rory after all and Ace would make sure he'd stay close to her anyway. He got in the limo after Marty though, nodding at the girls who were just introducing themselves to the new arrivals and took a seat across from Rory. By now, Finn and Colin had gotten in as well and after a knock from Finn to the tinted window separating the back from the driver, the limo started to roll away from the parking lot.

Rory was making small talk with the other two girls and Finn and Colin were talking about the party last Saturday while Logan just listened to one or the other conversation taking place. And he watched Marty, how he uncomfortably shifted in his seat. This was probably his first ride in a limo and from the looks of it, he wasn't really enjoying it. Nor did he seem to take any interest in either one of the conversations, not that Logan could blame him for that.

And he wasn't the only one who noticed that. "Marty and I were just having a Marx Brother's marathon, right Marty?" Rory asked, smiling at her friend.

"Sounds like fun," Logan nodded with a smile, trying to help Rory acquaint Marty more into the group. "What did you watch?" he asked Marty.

Marty shrugged. "Just the classics, you know," he answered vaguely.

Rory gave him a look and then quickly turned back to Logan. "Yeah, with the Marx Brothers you can only go with the classics. We just finished 'I love Lucy' when you showed up."

"God, I love that show," Finn sighed. "Don't you just love that show?"

"I don't know, I never could see what all the hype about the Marx Brothers is. Me, I think they suck and are nowhere near funny," Rosemary said, making a face.

Finn and Rory gaped at her and you could see just how much it cost Finn not to call such a remark a blasphemy. Amused, Logan shared a glance with Colin. Usually, Finn would now make a total one-hundred-eighty degree turn and declare that he absolutely agrees with whatever the momentary lady of his heart was saying. Now though they were talking about some of Finn's favorite shows…

"How can you say that?" Rory asked with big eyes. "Have you ever really watched them at all?"

Rosemary frowned. "No… I tried to watch them but they were so annoying I just couldn't go through with it."

Incredulous, Rory shook her head. "Well, there's your problem! You've got to watch them through from start to finish or you'll never understand them! They only make sense after you watched them! Actually, some of them you've got to watch several times before they make sense!" she insisted.

Finn nodded eagerly, his face having lit up a bit when he had heard that his lady had never actually watched the movies. "Love's right. Perhaps we can try it together one evening. I promise I'll make it up to you when you still don't like them at the end of the first movie," he suggested, wriggling his eyebrows at her.

Rosemary arched an eyebrow. "That of course would entail that I would go out with you in the first place."

"Now, don't worry about that, my beautiful rose. Who wouldn't want to go out with a fine male exemplar like me?" Finn asked, sending her a self-assured grin.

Everyone but Finn rolled their eyes.

* * *

Ten minutes later, the limo pulled to a stop outside the China Palace. Ten minutes filled with meaningless chatter and a lot of tension, mostly because one grumpy bartender was in a very disgruntled mood, despite every effort of Rory's and the others to make things lively.

Frankly said, Marty got on Logan's nerves big time and his patience was slowly running out on him. Rory was being super nice and he just kept glowering! And Logan and the rest of them really tried to be nice as well, but he could see that if Marty kept his attitude on for much longer, Colin and Finn would stop playing nice, he could see that in their eyes. And they wouldn't be the only ones, he thought darkly.

The others spilled out of the limo and Logan gestured for Rory and Marty to go ahead. Rory looked at Marty and then to Logan, clearly not happy with the situation, and nodded for him to leave before them. For a moment, Logan hesitated, but finally, he decided to comply and got out of the limo into the freezing cold. When he looked up he could see that the girls were already inside while Finn and Colin were waiting for them at the door, frowning when they noticed that Rory and Marty didn't immediately follow him out of the limo.

Logan joined them. "You guys go ahead. I'll wait here for them."

"You sure?" Colin asked, glaring at the limo.

Logan nodded. "Yeah. I'm sure they'll follow us any moment now."

Finn, too, threw a glare at the limo. "Yeah, well, that jealous asparagus better behave himself better than so far. He's ruining the good mood here and nothing and no one is allowed to ruin the good mood tonight," he muttered darkly but followed the girls inside, Colin close behind him.

With a sigh, Logan looked back to the limo. This had been a bad idea. Perhaps it would have been better after all if he had just accepted Rory's initial refusal to come along. And he shouldn't have then made the mistake of even inviting Marty to come along as well. Clearly, Marty and Logan and his friends just didn't get along very well.

Finally, Rory got out of the limo, followed by Marty. Impassive, Logan watched them come up to him.

"You didn't have to wait for us," Rory said, but smiled at him.

Automatically, Logan met her smile with one of his own. "It's okay. We got a table in a private room," he explained as he opened the door for them.

Rory gave him a look and chuckled. "So you thought you'd wait on us so we don't get lost? Sweet. But you know, I could have just asked them about the Big Money Boys party and I'm pretty sure they could have showed us the way."

Logan shook his head. "Wouldn't be so sure about that, Ace. This place's pretty in currently so we're probably not the only Big Money group here tonight," he told her as he helped her out of her coat and handed it to the already waiting restaurant hostess, along with his jacket as well. Uncomfortable, Marty shrugged out of his jacket as well and left it with the maitre 'd.

Rory's eyes went big. "What, and more prestigious than you all?" she gasped in mock shock.

For a moment, Logan pondered her words before he shook his head. "Yeah, you're right. They could have shown you the way all right."

Marty watched their display a bit awkwardly and now took a deep breath. "So… you've been here before?" he asked, rather civilly.

Logan nodded. "A few times. You want the best Chinese food in town, here's the place to come to." He smiled. "And we love Chinese. Come on," he told them and led them to the private room where he and the boys have eaten whenever they were here. "There you go," he said once they arrived and gestured them inside.

Marty went in but before Rory could follow, Logan quickly stopped her by touching her arm. "Hey, everything all right?" he wanted to know.

With slight surprise, she looked back at him and nodded. "Yeah, everything's okay," she answered and looked towards the entrance. "I think it will get better now," she said somewhat apologetically.

Logan shrugged. "Don't worry about it, Ace," he told her. "I wouldn't know what you are talking about."

Rory gave him a smile and turned to go inside the room but Logan wasn't ready to let her go yet. "You know, we didn't have really time so far to say a proper hello," he said, his voice dropping a notch.

Rory turned back to him. "No we haven't," she agreed, her eyes meeting his.

Pleased by her response, Logan stepped closer to her. "Well then," he said quietly, starting to lean down at her.

"Nor have we now," Rory said with a laugh and escaped his arms that had wanted to pull her to him. "Friends waiting, you know. Part of that whole group thing." She sent him a meaningful look and turned to finally go join their friends.

Logan sighed. Damn… he had known that the group thing was eventually going to come back to bite him. And boy, she was really good in those little, mean punishments… Something he should start to remember.

Nevertheless, there was a smile when he followed her.

* * *

"I swear, I thought he was never going to wake up," Logan laughed, looking at Colin, remembering only too well the morning after the night Colin had his first experience with tequila.

Colin grinned. "If I knew the hangover was going to last that long I wouldn't have," he declared though probably everyone at the table knew that he didn't really mean it. Though to be fair, ever since then, Colin usually stayed away from tequila – unless they were in Mexico, of course. One couldn't go to Mexico and not drink tequila.

Rosemary rolled her eyes. "There's nothing like a 'you wouldn't believe how drunk I was' story to get the girls all hot."

"It always worked before," Colin answered with a smirk.

At that moment, the waiter arrived with another tray full of food.

Juliet made a face. "Oh God, the smell of this food is making me ill," she groaned.

Inwardly, Logan thought that wasn't too big of a surprise. After all, she looked like she hadn't eaten anything in years. The few pieces of salad greens she had eaten so far seemed to be everything she was going to eat tonight.

What a waste.

"Mmm, I think it's delicious," Rory said and put another forkful into her mouth, causing Logan to smile.

Juliet looked at her with a mixture of envy and offence. "How can you eat like that?" she asked.

In the hour they had been there so far Rory for sure had eaten the most of them all, very much to the surprise of the girls. And envy, if Logan wasn't mistaken.

"Juliet hasn't eaten a meal since 1994," Rosemary explained to the others.

"My metabolism simply doesn't accept food," Juliet answered defensively.

Logan shook his head. "Yeah, that must be it. A modern medical miracle," he said dryly as he poured himself some more beer. "May I?" he asked Rory and already was filling up her glass.

"Sure," Rory said anyway and looked over to Marty. "Hey Marty, do you want some beer?" she asked.

Marty seemed about to decline but Logan quickly took care of it by simply filling his glass as well. "Here you go, man. I got you," he said. After all, he had only ordered that damn beer in order to do Marty a favor. He well remembered that one time at Rick's where they had last hung-out together and had thought, in another effort to make it more comfortable for Marty, to order beer for him.

Logan liked beer, but with Chinese Food? Please…

"Thanks," Marty muttered sarcastically.

Not that it looked as if Logan's consideration for Rory's friend seemed to be appreciated.

"Rosemary's going home with me tonight," Finn declared loudly. "I just thought everyone at this table should know."

Rosemary performed a perfected eyeroll. "Oh, Finn, you do hallucinate," she said, not at all impressed.

Logan had to give it to her that so far, she had showed more resistance to Finn's exotic charms than anyone else before her. Though his gut told him that sooner or later, she too would relent. Otherwise she wouldn't be here.

"Are you going to eat that fried shrimp?"

At Juliet's question, Logan looked over to her as she hungrily watched Rory eating.

"I think I am," Rory confirmed with a nod.

"Oh, God, can I watch?" Juliet asked almost breathlessly, smiling with shining eyes.

"Juliet, just eat something!" Logan told her with an unbelieving smile, exasperated. Why would that girl not simply eat something?

"No!" Juliet protested. "I am not eating until I get married to some gorgeous but very poor man who will sign an iron-clad pre-nup and get very, very fat, but he won't ever leave me because he would be cut off without a penny and die in a trailer park," she elaborated her 'diet' plan.

Well, that was an interesting plan, Logan had to give her that. Totally crazy, of course, and sick, but definitely interesting. He saw something that looked like relief on Colin's face and had to hide a smile. Yep, from the looks of it, every guy at this table was safe from Juliet. Wait no, that wasn't entirely true, Logan remembered and glanced at Marty. He definitely would fall under the category of poor. Logan had his serious doubts about the gorgeous part, but then, he would not be a judge of that, thankfully. So perhaps it was fate that Marty had ended up sitting between Juliet and Rory with Colin as far away from the blond as it was possible. He took a closer look on the somewhat shocked face of Marty – and Rory as well for that matter. Nah… he doubted very much that there was even the slightest chance that Marty and Juliet would ever hook up.

Too bad.

At least then the guy would stop lusting after Logan's girl.

"My God, that is brilliant!" Finn exclaimed in awe at Juliet's game plan for her life.

"That is sick," Rosemary corrected him.

Without even hesitating, Finn nodded seriously. "I agree with anything Rosemary says tonight," he told everybody at the table.

"Not going home with you," Rosemary immediately crushed down his hope.

Boy, that girl really liked to roll her eyes, Logan thought as he leaned towards Rory and, without thinking laid a hand on her shoulder and started playing with her soft, silky-smooth hair, oblivious to both the glares from Marty and the knowing glances he received from his friends for that unconscious action.

With a wary glance at Marty's hurt and baleful expression, Colin changed the topic. "You know where they had the best Chinese food in the world?" he asked. "This tiny little place outside of Zugerberg."

Logan looked up. "Aw, Zugerberg," he remembers with delight. Oh yeah, that was some memorable time he had spent with Colin when he and Finn had visited him in Switzerland.

"The golden days of Zugerberg," Finn exclaimed dreamily as well.

"What's Zugerberg," Marty asked, puzzled.

"Zugerberg is the boarding school I went to in Switzerland," Colin explained.

"Really?" Rory chirped in with interest.

Logan nodded in response, his hand still playing absentmindedly with Rory's hair, twirling strands of her hair around his finger.

"Yep," Colin answered as well. "Grade seven through twelve."

"Wow… living in Switzerland?" Rory commented, impressed. "That sounds exciting."

Hmm, perhaps, if they really decided to go to Europe this year, Logan would ask her to come along with them. They could show her all the great places they had learned to know and love – and discover a few new ones as well. She sure seemed to like to travel; otherwise, she wouldn't want to become an overseas correspondent. Plus, from what Rory had told him, she already had been over on the old continent two times so they could ditch most of the big tourist attractions, concentrate more on the unknown attractions. Yeah, that could really turn their summer to some great holidays…

"Boarding school… Man, that must've sucked," Marty, contrary to Rory, said sympathetically though.

Colin stared at him incredulously. "Sucked?" he repeated, unbelieving. "Are you kidding? Those are the greatest days of my life. Oh my God, the partying that went on there. Insane!" he said with a laugh.

Boy, he would never have thought that mingling with the poor would bring up so many fundamental differences, Logan thought with a sigh and looked at Marty, letting wisps of Rory's hair slip from his finger. "I did a year in Andover. Not bad," he said more calmly and seriously. Actually, it had been several boarding schools, but he didn't think that Marty had to know that.

The concept seemed too foreign for Marty which was proven by his next question. "So you didn't miss your home, your family?" he asked, flabbergasted.

"My family?" Colin asked back, perplexed by the question. "Did I miss my family?" He chuckled and looked at Logan. "Logan, did I miss my family?"

The simple answer was that the day Colin missed his family was the day hell froze over. But Logan decided to play along, perhaps it would get clearer to Marty then. "Huh, let's see…" he said thoughtfully. "Which mom were you on then?" he asked, letting his hand softly touch Rory's hair.

"I believe it was the blonde," Colin answered with a slight frown, trying to remember through the parade of his many step-moms.

"Ah yes," Logan agreed with a smile. Boy, Colin had hated that bitch.

"She was hot," Finn nodded with a lecherous grin.

"You didn't know her," Colin reminded him.

Finn shrugged his comment away. "All your mothers have been hot, Colin," he simply said.

Well, that was true, Logan secretly agreed. The old McCrae sure liked his women hot and beautiful.

Colin looked back to Marty. "No, Marty, I didn't miss my family," he emphasized.

They all laugh, but it was unnoticeable that Marty's laugh was more than just a little forced. Logan sighed. Obviously, Marty hated it here. And Logan couldn't say that he was enjoying the bartender's presence either. His hand on Rory's hair slowly let go of her soft curls and trailed down her back. He only hoped that dating Rory didn't mean that they would have to drag Marty along often. Though, if he judged the other guy correctly, Marty himself wouldn't want to go on another group trip.

Hopefully.

"What about you? Which boarding schools have you attended?" Juliet asked Rory.

Surprised, Rory looked up from her food. "Me?" she asked, puzzled.

"Yeah, who else?" Juliet asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, uhm, not one," Rory answered.

"Not one? Not a single one?" Juliet asked with disbelief.

Rory shook her head.

"How did you manage to stand the parents?" Rosemary asked, apparently stunned by those news as well as her friend.

Rory gave her a puzzled look as well. "It was no big deal. My mom and I get along well. She's my best friend," she explained to the girls.

Logan could see that this answer only amazed the other two girls more – no wonder, in their circle such a thing was next to impossibility. On the other hand, though, he was pleased to see that they hadn't even considered the fact that Rory Gilmore wasn't raised like the rich kids in Hartford. It proved to him once more that Rory could mingle with his crowd without a problem.

His hand reached the hemline of her red shrug and continued his way down to the hemline of her light pink blouse.

"So…" he said in an attempt to change the topic. "Who's ready for the next round?" he asked and looked up for the waiter to signal him that they could bring more food.

"Certainly me!" Finn agreed wholeheartedly.

"You even have to ask?" Rory asked, smiling at him.

Their eyes met and Logan smiled, shaking his head. Instead of going back to look for the waiter, Logan found himself transfixed by her blue eyes and before he even realized it, his hand on her back slid under her blouse.

The jolt the contact to her naked skin gave him reminded him only too well of just what he had dreamed of every single night since their make out session at her grandparent's wedding renewal party.

The kick Logan received from Colin to his shin, reminded him just where he was though – and what he was doing. Damn if he didn't blush a little there! Quickly, Logan let his hand drop away from Rory's back and he brought it back onto the table. A glance sideward told him that Rory too had blushed and was staring intently at her almost empty plate now. Another glance around provided two oblivious faces from the girls, two smirking ones from his friends and a very scowling one from Marty.

Logan just about managed to stop himself from shaking his head. And once again he had lost all sense of time and place while staring into those eyes of his Ace. If Colin hadn't brought him back with his kick, it would have gotten very out of hand, very fast, Logan had no doubt about that. Damn… Why couldn't he maintain any control around this girl? Logan wasn't one to lose control but the last few encounters with Rory for sure had shown that that apparently was far from the case with Rory. Well… at least it seemed as if she had been as unaware of their actions as he had been. That did console him a bit. Still… something needed to be done.

This couldn't continue like this!

* * *

"Okay, the night's young," Logan said, taking a sip, and looked around. "Where are we going next?" he wanted to know, grabbing the last bit of his fortune cookie and threw it into his mouth.

Rory groaned. "I don't think I can move."

Smiling, Logan glanced at her. Rory sure hadn't held back this night and he had enjoyed watching her eat with such an appetite. Especially with someone like Juliet at the table.

"You're full?" Juliet asked Rory excitedly.

"I'm full," Rory agreed wholeheartedly with a nod.

"Is it fabulous?" Juliet breathlessly asked, wanting to know.

"You know, Juliet, it doesn't suck," Rory told her nonplussed and in a tone that caused Logan to wonder what she really had on her tongue to say. He got the slight impression that Rory wasn't Juliet's biggest fan. But then, to be honest, neither was he. Or anyone else around the table but Rosemary.

"Let's go to the Alligator Lounge," Finn suggested.

"Yes! Perfect!" Logan agreed, liking the idea. He looked at Rory. "Zydeco music. You'll love this place," he promised her.

"Well, I…" Rory though answered hesitantly, casting a doubtful glance at Marty.

Right, he had almost forgotten the spoilsport, Logan thought grumblingly and looked past her at Marty. "What do you say, Marty? You up for a little Cajun craziness?" he asked him, trying to sound as jovially as he could.

Not at all to his surprise, Marty though started to shake his head hesitantly. It was obvious that the guy wasn't eager to go to the Alligator Lounge. Or rather said to spend any more time with this group. "Uh, I…" Marty started to say.

"Okay, I got it," Colin interrupted him, looking up. "Everybody owes seventy-five bucks. Pony up, please, so we can get the hell out of here," he hurried them on.

"Seventy-five?" Marty asked, frozen, but no one really noticed him as they were too busy reaching for their wallets.

With a nod, Logan pulled out a few bills before he looked over to Rory. "I got you," he told her, briefly touching her arm.

It was the first touch he dared since his little embarrassing show of caressing her from earlier on.

"Okay," she nodded simply, something that pleased Logan. He had halfway expected her to protest and took it as a good sign for their developing relationship that she didn't. Then though he noticed her shooting a worried glance over to Marty. "Are you okay? Do you have enough?" she asked in a low voice so no one who shouldn't especially listen in, like Logan, could hear her.

At her quiet question, Logan took a closer look at Marty and finally noticed his wide eyes and shocked face.

Fuck.

He really should have thought earlier that the bartender probably couldn't afford this place. The thought had never occurred to Logan. There was no single restaurant on Earth that he or any of his friends couldn't afford so such a trivial thing just wasn't something any of them ever thought about. And whether Rory could afford it or not, never had been a question, as he had no intention of ever letting her pay when he invites her, like tonight.

Shit. Now it would really get awkward, he thought ominously, before he spoke up to Marty. ""Hey, don't sweat it, man. I can cover you, too," he offered as casually as possible with such a tricky matter.

Marty's eyes narrowed as he glared at him. "No thanks," he immediately refused with some hostility.

Usually, Logan would bristle at such a reaction to a perfectly gracious offer. Not though this time. Actually, he hadn't expected anything less from Marty. If he were in his place, as far-fetched as that was, he'd be hostile as well if the boyfriend of the girl he fancies has to cover for him. Still, the problem remained that obviously, Marty simply couldn't pay his share. "It's no big deal," Logan tried to reason. "I invited you. My treat."

Perhaps Marty would accept if he put it that way. After all, he had invited Rory as well and she hadn't thrown such a tantrum at letting him cover her share.

"It's okay," Marty though told him frostily and rose from his chair. "I just need to find an ATM. I'll be right back," he told them and left quickly.

"Marty!" Rory called after him in a pained voice.

"An ATM?" Colin asked amused. "My, how quaint," he snubbed, receiving a glare from Logan for that comment.

Not helping!

"I'll be right back," Rory said and got up as well.

Logan looked at her. "You okay?" he asked worriedly.

"Oh, yeah. No, I'm fine," she assured him and started to walk backwards away from them. "I just – I think I remember seeing a bank across the street, so I'll go catch Marty." She quickly turned and vanished after Marty.

Logan stared after her for a moment before he glared back at Colin. "Thanks, man, great thinking," he growled.

Colin shrugged. "What? I just counted what everyone owed."

Rosemary and Juliet exchanged a look and got up. "Bathroom break, guys. We'll be right back," Rosemary said.

Finn nodded. "Can't wait for you to be back, so hurry, darling," he said, shooting her a to-die-for grin, but then his eyes returned to his friends, oblivious to the girl's departure.

"Oh, and it didn't occur to you that Margarita Marty probably doesn't have seventy-five dollars to spend on a meal?" Logan asked Colin sarcastically.

"I doubt he has that much money at all," Colin smirked.

Logan shook his head. "Really Colin, sometimes you're such an ass."

Colin narrowed his eyes. "What did you expect, Logan? That I say, 'everyone, ninety bucks and for you, Marty, let's say ten'? Think that would have worked better?"

"You could have simply let one of us pay the bill and later we'd have divided among us. Like we usually do," Logan told him with gritted teeth and narrowed his eyes, taking a closer look at Colin. "Oh boy…" he said with sudden realization and shook his head. "You planned this, didn't you? That's why you handled the bill this way. God Colin, what were you thinking?"

"Just so you know: I didn't plan it. I just grabbed the opportunity," Colin replied coolly. "And that guy had it coming to him."

"And you just forgot that he's a friend of Ace? Not to mention that he's my guest?" Logan asked angrily. "Since when are my guests open targets for humiliation?"

"For starters, I hardly humiliated him, I've been perfectly nice to him all evening, though he for sure didn't deserve that. It's not my fault that he can't afford to play in our league," Colin answered icily. "But apart from that, this is the guy who badmouthed you big time the other night, nearly managing to ruin everything we've worked hard to accomplish between you and Rory. And great friend he is. All evening, he has been nothing but rude, towards us, towards you, even towards Rory. She tried her best to make him part of the group, the conversations, but every single time he simply brushed her attempt away. And you! You were actually nice to him all evening, not that he has deserved such courtesy, but all he had to give you in return were glares and scowls!" He shook his head and for the first time, Logan could see just how angry Colin was. "It was high time someone put him in his place and I sure as hell am not sorry for doing so."

"Oh yeah? And who gave you the right to that, huh? May I remind you that it was me whom Marty so nicely cussed about at Rick's, not you? It's my girl he's in love with and it's my friends he was rude to all evening. But _I_ invited him Colin. He was out with Rory and the only way for her to come along with us was for Marty to come with Rory. Besides, if Rory and I are spending more time together from now on, we simply have to get used to her friends hanging out with us as well and most of her friends aren't in our league, as you so nicely put it. I don't want her to feel torn between spending time with me, us or with her friends. I don't want her feeling uncomfortable at the thought of my friends joining her friends," Logan pointed out, his anger growing. He pointed after Rory and Marty. "You think she's happy now? Or feels like coming along with Marty in tow was a good idea? You think she's going to blame anyone else for that other than herself? Me perhaps or you or even Marty? You think that she'll agree to let her friends come with us anytime soon again?"

Colin crossed his arms in front of him, unrelenting. "If you ask me, if we never have to see or deal with that guy again, all the better for me."

"I think you managed to achieve that, don't worry," Logan said bitterly. "But what if this evening also destroyed his friendship with Rory? You think she'll forgive us for that?"

Hell, couldn't Colin see that he had risked everything between Logan and Rory, hell, even between them and Rory, just for his little, petty revenge?

"She's better off without him and you know that as well as I do. Not to mention that the least that guy has in mind is being friends with Rory," Colin retorted back.

"That's not for you or me to decide!" Logan protested.

"Jeez, guys, cool down," Finn finally intervened, giving them both a look. "What's done is done. Yeah, Marty hasn't been the nicest person to hang around with tonight but our girl obviously cares for him, so I guess he's pretty cool under normal circumstances. And yeah, guy's head over heels in love with Rory but I guess after tonight, he knows that he has definitely lost her to you, mate, and that realization seeping in probably didn't help to improve his already bad mood." His eyes met Colin. "And yeah, this is the same guy that dished my friend, not saying very much nice things about him and so I'm not exactly his fan either. But deliberately humiliating him, and that you did, my friend, no doubt about that, was pretty low as well and you better pray our girl never gets wind of this." His gaze moved on to Logan. "But then I doubt she'll ever figure it out. You and me both know that Colin here went out of his way to punish Marty a little, but for the others, all our mate did was figure out how much each of us had to pay in order to get the bill covered, something that's, according to my knowledge, a pretty common thing if you go out in a group. So no need to get your panties into such a twist, dude." His eyes slid to the entrance. "And now I suggest you each retract your claws and fangs, 'cause the ladies as well as Rory and Marty should come back any moment now and you two still fighting about this unfortunate matter will be the doornail for this fast becoming disastrous evening."

And sure enough, Finn had barely finished his speech, Rosemary and Juliet came back, closely followed by Marty and Rory. With a sinking feeling, Logan realized the meaning of Rory wearing her coat and jacket in Marty's case. He bet those fucking seventy-five bucks that they weren't going with them to the Alligator Lounge.

Rory smiled at him, while Marty, avoiding anyone's' eyes, wordlessly handed Colin the money. Logan frowned. Quickly, Logan turned his head to Colin to warn him with a death glare to don't even think about making any comment at all. But Colin simply took the money with a nod and rose from his chair.

"Alligator Lounge, here we come!" Finn exclaimed with a grin and jumped up.

Colin nodded. "Everyone has their things?" he asked.

Meanwhile, Rory came over to Logan who had stood up as well by now and looked apologetically at him. "Sorry everyone, but Marty and I are heading back," she said, her eyes never leaving Logan's though. "We still have a couple of movies to watch."

With a sigh, Logan nodded, not even trying to change her mind. He knew it would be futile anyway.

Finn though protested loudly. "Ah no, love, you can't leave us hanging like that! Alligator Lounge! Zydeco music! Fantastic drinks! Dance floor! You even get to dance with me, I promise you that!"

Laughing, Rory broke her eye contact with Logan and looked over to Finn. "Sorry, Finn, another time."

"But…"

"Marx Brothers, Finn. Do I have to say more?" Rory interrupted his protest.

That shut Finn up as he frowned. "Oh, well, I guess another time then," he pouted.

"Sure," Rory nodded and glanced over to Marty who stood in the back, his head hanging low. She looked back to Logan. "Well, I guess we should go then, bus leaves in ten minutes."

Immediately, Logan shook his head. "No, Ace, I'll call a cab for you two. It's too cold outside."

Chuckling, Rory shook her head. "Nah, we're fine, don't worry. You know, I know you probably don't have any experience with such things, Huntzberger, but buses are heated nowadays."

"I could call Frank, you know? He can be here within ten minutes," Logan though tried again with a frown.

"No way will you call out poor Frank for just a little ride. Seriously, Logan, there's nothing wrong with us taking the bus," Rory rejected his offer, her eyes warning him not to protest again.

"Fine," he sighed and looked up, seeing that the others had left out of the room. Resigned, he put his hand onto the small of her back and led her out as well. "I'm sorry," he murmured.

Surprised, she looked up at him. "For what?"

Logan shrugged and looked forward, spotting the rest of the group, putting on their coats. "For bringing you here. For my friends."

Rory shook her head and smiled. "No need to. The food was excellent. And if anyone has to be sorry here, it's me. Marty…" she sighed and looked down. "I knew he didn't really want to come out with you guys. He only agreed because he knew that I wanted to come along. I should have just said no and stayed home with him, not forcing him along."

She had wanted to come with him so much? Logan's heart warmed at that little information and his fingers on her back gently started making comforting circles. "Hey, not your fault either. You said it yourself, Marty didn't have to agree. I probably shouldn't have been so insisting on you coming anyway after I've seen that you already had plans."

He just had missed her so damn much. But he wasn't going to tell her that.

With a laugh, she looked back up at him. "Okay, why don't we agree on the fact that none of us were at fault and both of us were at fault?"

Logan nodded, chuckling. "Agreed."

She smiled a last time at him and then moved forward to stand beside Marty. "Okay, we need to go. Rosemary, Juliet, nice to meet you. Finn, dance a song for me, okay? Colin, keep an eye on these idiots."

"Don't I always?" Colin sighed. "Bye, Rory. Marty."

The others joined in on the good-byes and a minute later, Rory and Marty were gone and the rest of them were ready to spill back into the limo. Before Logan got in, he cast a dark look after the two, moving quickly towards the next bus stop. He didn't like the outcome of this evening. Not at all.

"See?" Colin said quietly as he stepped up to Logan from behind. "No drama after all. He went to an ATM and got the money."

Logan turned his head to look at Colin. "You see any ATM around here?" he wanted to know.

Puzzled, Colin looked around.

"There is none," Logan said. "At least not within a ten minute radius. Now, who do you think loaned the money to Marty?"

For the first time, Colin looked somewhat guilty.

Logan nodded. "Now think about how you'd feel if you had to borrow money from the girl you're in love with." He shook his head. "I don't know why exactly you hate Marty that much, I mean, you never liked him, even before we met Ace and learned that he's her friend, but you sure had your revenge tonight. Hope you're happy."

Without another word, he got into the limo.

* * *

Usually, Logan liked the Alligator Lounge very much. The place was exquisite, wasn't too up-town though so you still could have fun and the music usually was good. This time though he hated it here and finally, after barely an hour and only one drink, he decided that this party simply held no appeal for him and he had had enough. Plus, Finn had started to sing in his attempt to impress Rosemary. Yep, definitely high time to leave.

None of his friends protested when he had announced his departure, but then, Colin was still on the outs with him and Finn was otherwise preoccupied. Besides, ever since Rory had split from the group, Logan hadn't been in an especially good mood.

This evening hadn't gone at all how he had wanted it. Most of all, he would have wanted to go with the original plan and go out with Rory and Rory alone. That would have been much better. But both their friends ruined that simple but perfect plan, with Rory already having Marty over and with Colin and Finn insisting that he come along to this thing tonight.

Hell, there hadn't even been an opportunity to kiss her and damn, he so much wanted to kiss her again!

But the one who really was responsible for this mess was his father. If he hadn't insisted on Logan coming along to the West Coast, then Logan would have been able to make it to their date last Saturday. And _then_ he would have made sure that Rory didn't have plans for this night. Or if his dad had just let him know when exactly he could get back to school, then he would have been able to call Rory and set a new date, but no, of course not, his dad had to ruin that possibility as well.

It just wasn't fair!

Slowly, Logan started to believe that some big, cosmic scheme had fun at first pushing him and Rory together, only to then, when they finally were ready to really be together, started throwing things their way just to keep them apart.

With a frustrated sigh, Logan paid the cab driver and slammed the door shut after him, looking at the campus in front of him.

This was ridiculous. It was barely 11pm and here he was, coming _back_ from going out already. On a Saturday! Grumbling, he looked towards his dorm. He wasn't tired. He had been tired of the group company, but he for sure wasn't tired enough to go to bed already. Okay, perhaps he could go watch a movie or start to catch up with what he had missed in these two weeks. Heaven knew that there were more than enough notes from his friends on his desk.

But none of these possibilities held any appeal for him.

Only hesitating another moment, Logan slowly started to walk – to Branford House. He wasn't sure what he would expect, but something just pulled him there, instead of going to his own dorm. After all, if Rory and Marty really had gone back to watch more Marx Brothers there was no use for him to go by Rory's place. He definitely wasn't keen on being in their combined presence again and he guessed that that was the case also the other way around.

Perhaps though they weren't watching movies anymore. Perhaps, after the humiliation of Marty right in front of Rory, Marty had said his farewell right after getting back. That's at least what Logan would have done in his place. No way would he have gone back into her dorm suite to watch a movie with the girl he fancied and from whom he had to borrow money to pay for his dinner. So perhaps, if there was a God after all, Rory was alone right now…

Logan reached his destination and when he saw light in Rory's window, his heart started to beat a little faster. He had been right. She had to be alone right now. Marty may be her friend, but Logan doubted that they'd hang out in her room – and definitely not after everything that had happened tonight.

He was moving before he even realized it.

All he knew was that he wanted to see his Ace – alone, to have the opportunity to talk with her, undisturbed by anyone, to finally kiss her again, to continue where they had left before he had to leave for the business trip.

He just wanted to be with her.

And the way he saw it, the less people with the information that he was with Rory, the better. Less interruptions that way. He had no idea if Paris was at home or not, or even worse, if Doyle was there with Paris, but he had no intention of even risking running into them. And in order to avoid that, there was only one way to get to Rory.

He knocked on her window, seeing her lying on the bed through the blinds. At his knock though, she looked up and rose, coming over to the window to pull up the blinds. Surprised, she saw that it was him and she reached over to open the window.

As soon as it was open, Logan pulled it open far enough to put his head in between.

"Hey," he greeted her in a soft voice.

"Hey," she greeted equally, softly.

"Can I?" Logan asked, gesturing inside.

"Yeah, sure," she invited him in and stood back to give him enough space to get in.

Logan didn't need to hear that twice and swiftly, he climbed in. Even though that it was the ground floor, entering through the window actually wasn't as easy as it looked like. Once inside, he closed the window after him and turned to face Rory, who had her arms crossed in front of her by now. She had changed into some comfortable grey sweat pants and a long-sleeved cotton shirt that looked very good on her, in Logan's opinion. Just hugging the right parts. Then again, with Rory, she probably could wear anything and she would look good in it.

"Huh… that move always seems cooler in the movies," Logan commented, flexing his shoulders.

"No, I think you maneuver your way through a window quite gracefully," Rory said, waving at him.

"Thank you," Logan answered with a nod.

"I assume you had practice," she remarked dryly.

Logan shook his head. "No, first time," he told her, the truth actually. He did prefer using the door.

"I'm sure," she said sarcastically. Apparently she didn't quite believe him. Oh well, Logan thought and briefly touched her arm but let his hand drop away again. "So, how was the Zydeco music?" she asked, brushing wisps of her hair back and letting her arms fall down again.

"Ah, I left when Finn jumped in on vocals," Logan said, touching his eyebrow. Was it just him or was this whole conversation really awkward? Though, with the palpable tension between them that wasn't very surprising. Still… he wished they could get past this – awkwardness.

"Excellent self-preservation instinct," she said smiling, giving a slight nod.

Logan looked down. "I just wanted to make sure you got home okay," he told her softly, with their eyes mesmerized by the sight of the other, he put a hand on her arm, letting his hand slowly caress her arm, his need to touch her was simply too great to ignore any longer.

Rory nodded. "Oh yeah, I got home okay."

"So, I see," Logan replied, his voice getting a notch huskier.

Okay, awkwardness still there but getting overwhelmed by the tension between them. Well, Logan could live with that just fine.

"Thanks for the concern, I appreciate it," Rory said quietly, amusement swinging in her voice.

Deciding that the best approach now was to simply be blunt, Logan smirked. "It wasn't all concern," he admitted with a devilish smile.

Nope, that he definitely hadn't been this time. Concerned a little about her feelings perhaps, but certainly not about her safety. That much he trusted Marty.

She smiled. "Oh, really?" she asked coyly.

"No," he told her, shaking his head and stepped closer to her, bringing up his right hand to touch her other arm. "I don't believe I said a proper goodnight to you this evening," he said, staring down into her eyes.

"No, you didn't," Rory agreed, her eyes smiling shiningly at him and his hands slid to her waist.

"Good night, Ace," he wished her charmingly and drew her up against his body to kiss her.

A long, deep, tender kiss that held no rush, no pressure, no crazed need, but still was no less passionate than their other kisses. It was just a perfect kiss for a beginning to something he had longed for, for weeks now.

When they parted, his mouth kept hovering over hers, having no intention of drawing away from her anytime soon.

"I thought you said a proper goodnight," Rory told him with a smile as her hands reached up to the collar of his jacket to push it over his shoulders.

Giving half a laugh, Logan helped her get his jacket off him and let it drop on the floor, their mouths always close to each other, but never quite meeting again.

With a smile, he drew his head back enough to look down her body. "You want to get changed into something more comfortable?" he asked.

Like into wearing nothing at all?

"More comfortable than this?" she asked, surprised, looking down at what she was wearing.

"I was actually hoping for some feetsie pajamas," Logan instead told her, only half joking. He bet she looked adorable in feetsie pajamas. She sure did in her kitten pajamas.

"Oh, now, you know I'm not that kind of girl," Rory laughed quietly, one of her hands brushed her hair back while the other grabbed his right elbow and started to walk backwards, towards her bed, pulling him with her. She lifted her head and Logan was more than happy to meet her again in a kiss. He felt her arms wrapping close behind his neck as his own arms were wrapping around her up from her waist as well in order to press her against his body and deepen their kiss even further. This time the kiss had lost all tenderness and was all of growing need, quickly gaining the same wild passion they had experienced back in the dressing room at the Windsor Club.

God…

Logan wanted nothing more than to give in to the need that kept growing inside him – and not just inside. But before he lost control altogether, he needed to know something, desperately, so he broke the kiss, as hard as it was for him, and rested his forehead on her forehead and gazed into her eyes, noticing that despite her forward action, she suddenly looked shy.

"Do you want me to go?" he seriously asked.

It was up to her, but she had to make the decision now. If they went any further, he wouldn't be able to stop anymore, he was pretty much sure about it. It was a knowledge that scared him on some level. Sure, there was always a point in sex when you couldn't go back anymore, but if you reached that point there was no physical way to stop. If the girl had second thoughts, some doubts, she would have stopped him long before. But here, with Rory, he knew that he was already bordering dangerously close to that point and that with them both still fully dressed. He feared that there was the possibility that if she would say no later on, he might not be able to draw back anymore – and at the same time, it exhilarated him like only a few things ever had.

Instead of answering him though she leaned up and drew him into a deep kiss again and he instinctively complied, more than happy to kiss her more and deeper. God, he definitely could grow addicted to those kisses, he dimly thought as he flushed her against his body once again and his hands started to roam over her body. Only when he grew aware that the back of one his hands was running lightly over her breast at least part of his sanity returned, long enough for him to break their kiss again.

"Rory, do you want me to go?" he asked again, more urgently this time. He needed to know, needed to hear her answer, the knowledge that this was what they both wanted, that she wanted it as much as he wanted it.

Needed it as much as he needed it.

He was fairly certain what her answer would be. After all, even now, they were still slowly approaching her bed and she kissed him with as much passion as he kissed her.

He needed to hear it nevertheless.

"No," she finally gave him the long awaited answer in a firm, sure voice and smiled.

He had never heard anything more pleasurable.

Yet… here he was, finally about to have what he had dreamed about for months now – and suddenly he felt… nervous.

"Okay, 'cause if you think climbing in that window was hard…" he rambled, all of a sudden unsure how to proceed. What was wrong with him? This wasn't his first time, for heaven's sake, still, right now he acted more nervous than Rory, who still pulled him with her until they reached her bed and she sat down on it. Logan stopped, gazing down at her.

"Shh…" she silenced him and reached up to pull him down to her.

It was a simple act, but somehow it broke him out of his unexplainable, momentary nervousness. He bent down and captured her lips with his own and when she laid down, he followed her, climbing on top of her.

Deepening their kiss, Logan started to slowly run one of his hands from where it had cupped her cheek down her neck, over her breast and stomach until he finally reached the hemline of her shirt and seconds later, he could feel at last the smooth skin of her stomach. From there he let the hand slowly run up again until he reached what he had been looking for – and groaned when he realized that there was no bra that separated him from touching the soft and sensitive skin there. His touch brought her to moan slightly against his mouth and the way Logan felt himself react to that sound told him that this first time would have to go a lot faster than he had planned.

Actually, nothing was like he had started to plan. Sure, they had had dinner together this evening, but neither had they been alone, like he had wanted them to be, nor had the place carried the intimacy he had originally preferred. Then, Marty and his own friends had robbed him of the pleasure to first take her out a little before he could escort her home. No, nothing was anything like he had imagined it over the past few weeks.

But it didn't matter.

All that mattered was that they were here now, that she was here, in his arms and ready to let him ravish her, and that was enough.

It was perfect.

Well, almost perfect, he thought with probably one of his last clear thoughts for the rest of the night. Rory's hands found their way under his sweater, her delicate fingers gently running up his back and Logan shuddered. Letting out a deep growl, he pulled his mouth away from hers and, unable to bear the sudden loss of contact, left a trail of kisses down her neck until he could bury his head in the crook of her neck for a moment, inhaling that scent of hers that he had noticed right at their first, well second encounter and that had engraved itself into his memory ever since then. It was making him crazy but at the same time, it gave him a feeling of comfort he hadn't known before.

Logan could barely imagine what storm of emotions and sensations awaited him, and he couldn't wait to find out, but first, the past had taught them to take precautions. With a sigh, he pressed a kiss onto that particular sensitive spot and then stemmed himself up onto his arms. Reluctantly, he got off from her.

Rory's eyes, that had fluttered close a while ago, opened to look up at him confused. "Logan?" she asked uncertainly.

Having gotten up, he quickly bowed down to give her a chaste kiss onto her lips. "I'll be right back," he whispered.

Her eyes followed him when he went over to her door and realization dawned in her when she watched him turn the lock. From the door he moved over to the window where he let down her blinds again, making sure that no one would be able to look through the blinds. Finally, he stepped to where his jacket had fallen onto the floor and picked it up to get out his cell phone. After he had turned it off and placed the jacket over the next chair, he looked up and met her eyes. "No interruptions this time," he told her determinedly.

With a smile, she slightly turned to her left and grabbed her own cell from the night table to turn it off as well. "No interruptions," she agreed when she turned back to him, her cheeks blushing, causing him to smile. "Paris' sleeping over at Doyle's," she added after a moment and he could see that it was now her turn to be nervous.

Logan made a face. "Though that's good to know I'd prefer if you could restrain from saying those names in times like this in the future," he told her lightly.

She laughed and he could already feel part of her sudden tension dissipating again. Good. Slowly, he moved back until he stood immediately beside her bed again, his eyes never leaving hers, staring widely and a bit uncertainly at him. For a while, they just stared at each other. Eventually, Logan reached up and cupped her face, his thumb gently caressing her cheek.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he promised quietly.

Rory moved her head into his hand and placed one of her hands to cover his hand. "I know," she said quietly. "But you know, I'm not a virgin anymore, if that's what you think." She smiled. "I'm not very experienced, but not a virgin."

Logan let out a laugh and stepped as close to her as he could while still standing. "I kind of figured that out already, Ace," he told her smiling.

"Yeah?" she asked, one of her eyebrows rising slightly.

"Hmm… no girl who can kiss like you is still a virgin," he let her know, still smiling. Then though his smile faded and quietness settled around them. "Come here," he beckoned to her in a low voice and obediently, she got onto her knees and rubbed closer to him.

Once again, he put his hands onto her waist and pulled her into a slow, sensual kiss, one that he could feel made her immediately relax again into his arms. Only then did he grab the hemline of her shirt and started to pull it up. Briefly, he broke their kiss so he could get it over her head with her helping him to get rid of it. Tossing it away, he ran a hand over her hair and moved in to capture her lips for a kiss again. Having picked up on the idea though he could feel Rory pulling up his sweater and soon, they had to break their kiss again so that article of clothing could be removed as well. Her hands came back to lay on his waist, from where she run them up to the back of his neck, pulling him down for a kiss whose passion skyrocketed with every passing second. When she dragged him down to lie on his back onto her bed again, he was more than eager to follow her.

* * *

"I'm sorry," Logan murmured softly, running his hand down her back.

For a moment, he wasn't sure if Rory had heard him or if she had fallen asleep but then she raised her head from where it had laid comfortably on his chest to look at him incredulously. "Sorry? What on Earth for?" she wanted to know.

He gave her a rueful smile. "Well, I've been a bit – rushed," he admitted.

Actually, rushed was a bit of an understatement. As soon as the rest of their clothes had been discarded, he had lost control completely. He wasn't sure if it was the beautiful view of her glorious body, or all the time he had waited for this moment, longed for it or if it was just that his Ace was some sort of human aphrodisiac, but whatever it was, it had consumed him, enflamed him, aroused him in a way he couldn't remember ever to have felt before and he had been powerless to fight against it – not that he had wanted to. And therefore, their first time was sadly over a lot sooner than he had planned.

Rory laughed, her eyes sparkling. "Logan Huntzberger, if you had taken any longer, I'd have killed you. And _then_, I really would have gotten mad."

"So the lady has no complaints," Logan concluded with a grin.

"Fishing for compliments, Huntzberger?" Rory immediately countered. "Wouldn't have thought that the big Master and Commander would need any reassurance."

Logan laughed. "Now, even the greatest like to hear an encouragement here and there."

"Hmm… but you're not going to get lucky this night, mister," Rory answered. "I don't think your ego needs another boost. It's big enough as it is."

"Ah, but do I hear here in your words that it would be a boost instead of a kick?" Logan remained persistent.

"Careful there… anymore fishing here and I'll start to believe you're really desperate," Rory warned.

"Okay, if you don't want to give me an answer, I guess I just have to get it myself," Logan responded with a smirk.

She raised an eyebrow. "So… And how are you going to do that?"

He wickedly smiled and with a quick move, he rolled on top of her. "Simple," he told her. "By repeating the action and examining your reaction closely. Simple physics: Action and reaction."

"Yeah, but you're forgetting that the interpretation of the reaction is just that… an interpretation. You thinking what it means doesn't make it real," Rory reminded him, her breath catching as he lightly kissed her collarbone.

"Hmm, you're right there. So the experiment has to be repeated as often as possible," Logan moved a bit deeper and pressed a hungry kiss onto her left breast, "and if the reaction remains the same," he moved to her right breast, "then one can be pretty safe to assume that," he rubbed back, leaving a trail of small kisses down her stomach until he stopped and let his tongue circle her navel, "his interpretation of the reaction is accurate," he finished and moved up again to kiss her long and deep.

"My, my, never knew you're such a little scientist," Rory said breathlessly when Logan released her lips again.

Logan nuzzled her nose, before he pressed a kiss on top of it and then drew back to look into her eyes, their blueness having put on a very much darker hue than he had ever seen them in so far. But then, he was sure his eyes were dark with lust as well. A certain part of his body had definitely recovered already from the exertion from not so long ago and was quickly rising for action again. "Oh you know, there are certain areas that simply captured my attention," he finally answered her with a meaningful look down at her.

"So I see," she chuckled quietly and then the little devil slightly lifted her hips so her center gently grinded against his hardness.

All thought of teasing banter left his mind and with a groan, he leaned down to kiss her, pushing his tongue deep into her mouth, meeting hers to engage in a duel of passion.

The pressure against his aching penis increased, begged him to enter, screamed at him to take her and Logan felt himself already slightly pushing into her.

With a curse, he pulled his head away from hers. "Rory," he muttered hoarsely, kissing her neck. He really loved to kiss that spot, directly over her pulse, beating fast and strong under his tongue. Looking up, he met her eyes. "You need to slow down," he told her, pleaded with her.

"I don't want to slow down," she protested in a low, but urgent voice though and slung her arms around his neck to draw him in for another kiss again whose heat surged through his body, enflaming him, burning him and once again, reason left him.

But when he felt her legs closing around him as well, he broke the kiss reluctantly. "Yeah, well, when you want us to be safe then you want to slow down, Ace," he whispered into her ear, kissing it.

It took a moment for his words to register, but when it did he felt her let go of him and her hips sank down onto the mattress again. When he looked at her, he had to smile affectionately. She had blushed. And he had been right with his suspicion. When she blushed, she blushed entirely. Why that sight aroused him even more was beyond him, but then, it didn't matter. Well, it did and it reminded him just why she had blushed in the first place. Quickly, he reached over to her night table to snatch himself a condom.

Once that was taken care of, he turned back to Rory, her body still flushed with embarrassment. Tenderly, he stroked strands of her hair off of her face before he leaned down to give her a caring, warm kiss, slow and sensual.

This time, he would take his time. Time to discover every inch of her body, time to show her just how much he appreciated what he found, saw, felt and tasted.

* * *

When Logan woke up the next morning – late in the morning – he was a little disoriented at first and it took him a moment to remember where exactly he was. Once he did though, he smiled and lifted his head a little to look down at the girl with dark curls resting on his chest – and his smile intensified while gentle warmth filled up his entire being.

With a contented sigh, he let his head fall back onto the pillow and he closed his eyes again. The night with Rory… it had been… he didn't know how to name it. Fantastic didn't even came close. Incredible would describe it better already, though it was still not a word powerful enough. Amazing, out of this world, extraordinary, magnificent, glorious… all words that could fit, but simply weren't enough. Perhaps there were no words to articulate what had happened between him and his Ace, he thought, his fingers lightly caressing and making circles on her back.

It had been special and that would have to do for a description, for now.

And perhaps this was the reason why he was still here and felt not even the slightest need to leave anytime soon. Perhaps it was also the reason why he actually loved the fact that Rory was cuddling against his body, half of her draped over him, even though he hated cuddling. Actually, as it was, he would be more than happy to stay where he was for the rest of his life. Happily sated and tired after a night full of passion with Rory still in his arms.

If he were somewhere else right now, and, with someone else, he knew that that thought would have made him frown if not even run. And some part of him knew that once he had left this little heaven on Earth, he probably would start to overanalyze this night. It wasn't a usual treat for him but since he had met this girl in his arms, he sure had started to think about a lot of things he usually didn't bother to think about. He preferred to just go with the flow, and for now, he would do just that and enjoy the moment. If he was lucky, he could keep the doubts, thinking and overanalyzing at bay for the time being.

He'd need his Ace for that though. The way he saw it, the only time he started to think was if he was away from her. So he simply had to make sure that they were apart as little as possible in the near future. Starting with today and convincing her into spending the day with him with no break whatsoever. Hmmm… he actually had no idea how big his chances were in achieving that. Yesterday, he still had been convinced that it wouldn't be an easy task. Today though… Rory had surprised him a few times this night. With her forwardness, with the fervor that had been in her and the intensity and passion with what she sometimes went at it. He had pegged her to be the shy type and in a way, she was… but only until her passion was set free and then she lost all traces of shyness, yeah, sometimes she actually had been a flirt.

It was an enticing combination.

Okay, so… how would he best go about convincing her to spend the day with him? Right. First thing, surprise her with breakfast. Now, in a hotel this would have been an easy task. Here though… but he was Logan Huntzberger and he'd be damned if he couldn't get his girl her coffee and some bagels. Hmm… an idea struck him and he grinned. Oh yeah… that would work.

Logan opened his eyes and looked around, careful to not wake Rory. He needed a phone. His phone was still in his jacket across the room and there was no way he was getting out of this bed right now. Rory's phone was on the night table though. And even better, her land line phone as well. Slowly, he reached out to grab that phone. Quickly, he punched in the numbers. He was aware that his voice may wake her – but then again, he counted on her forgiveness, once she had hot, steaming coffee right under her nose.

"Yeah?"

"Wanna make up for last night?" Logan asked as quietly as he could.

There was a long moment of silence. "Logan?"

"Yeah," Logan confirmed.

"Talk louder, I can barely hear you. And what on Earth makes you think I owe you anything?"

"You want to or not?" Logan asked, ignoring Colin's questions. Colin never had been a morning person.

Colin sighed. "If I don't, just how long will you pester me with that damn evening?"

Logan grinned, but said nothing.

"Right," Colin muttered, resigned. "And what do you want me to do?"

"Nothing bad, just a little delivery service," Logan reassured him. "Just get me two, no wait, four large cups of coffee… one straight black, one with milk and sugar, one a little sweetened with chocolate and make the last one my usual. Then I want bagels, cream cheese and a little of that Swiss cheese you keep in your stash. Hmm, and see if you can find me some blackberry muffins as well."

In his arms, Logan felt Rory slightly stir and he looked down at her.

"Anything else?" Colin asked sarcastically. "Why don't you get them yourself? I really…" his voice trailed of. "Wait. Did you say _four_ large coffees?" Colin asked after a moment.

"Hmmm…" Logan uttered, his eyes fixed on Rory, seeing if she was going to open her eyes.

"Oh, my God! You're with Rory, aren't you?" Colin exclaimed, sounding amazed. "How did you end up with her? And you finally did it, didn't you? Not just, I dunno, cuddling the whole time, right? Man, about damn time! I can't wait to tell Finn. Ha, I won the bet! But boy, you've got some telling to do, mate!"

Okay, perhaps it wasn't such a good idea to call Colin after all, Logan thought with a frown. "Just get the stuff and bring it over. Uh… just knock on Ace's window. And hurry," Logan told him. Rory moved a little. "Gotta go. Bye," Logan said and ended the call, putting the phone back on the night table.

When he turned back, two blue eyes, still heavy with sleep, met his. "Hey," he greeted her with a soft smile.

"Hey," she answered back and yawned, laying her head back onto his chest.

Slowly, Logan caressed her back.

"Did I dream it or were you just on the phone?" she asked after a while, still sounding tired.

Smiling, Logan decided to go with distraction and gently lifted her head with his finger so he could give her a long, deep, but tender kiss. "Good morning, Ace," he said once he let go of her lips again.

Her smile was blinding. "Am I supposed to ask if you call that a proper good morning now?" she wanted to know.

Logan smirked as he pushed back some strands of her hair. "I sure wouldn't mind it. It could get like our very own little special routine."

"And what would that routine exactly consist of?" Rory asked, amused.

"Ouch, I think it's perfectly fine the way it worked so far. I wish you a good whatever time of day, you ask me if I call that a proper good whatever and then we engage in a fervent session of passion," Logan summarized.

One of her eyebrows shot up. "Did you just say 'a fervent session of passion'?"

"It even rhymes," Logan nodded.

"Are you always so awfully poetic first thing in the morning?" Rory asked, looking curiously at him.

"Depends. If I happen to have spent a night in zealous ardor I do like to express that in flowery language," Logan told her, trying to sound as serious as he possibly could.

Rolling her eyes, Rory shook her head. "Okay, anymore expression like zealous ardor and you're getting out of this bed."

Now it was Logan's turn to raise an eyebrow. "Well, my beautiful maiden, then you perhaps better find a way to shut me up because once I started on the flowery…"

Rory shut him up by climbing right on top of him and pushing her tongue deep into his mouth.

* * *

"So, any plans for this fine Sunday?" Logan asked casually, licking the cream cheese off from his fingers and looked at Rory from under his eyelashes.

Rory reached for the last of her three coffees, the one with a bit chocolate in it. "Well, a shower would be nice for starters," she answered, savoring the taste of the coffee with half-closed eyes.

A sexy sight that aroused Logan on the spot. God, would he ever get enough of this girl? But for now he ignored the slight twitch in his lower body and nodded. "Yeah, I can only agree on that point. A shower would be nice."

Very nice indeed, he thought with a dirty grin.

"I don't remember inviting you to come along," Rory said dryly, taking in said dirty grin.

Logan flashed her a smile. "And I'll show you the error of that negligence later on," he promised her. "You know, I thought it would be nice to spend the day together," he added, looking at her to see her reaction.

Rory finished her coffee and leaned back onto the headrest, looking at the empty bags Colin had delivered half an hour ago – very grudgingly. "Ah… so that's why I had the honor of this breakfast," she said knowingly.

Logan didn't even try to deny it. "That and from what I remember from health class is that a person needs sustenance if one has worn himself out – or is planning to engage in heavy activity."

Her eyes darkened, causing another twitch in Logan's lower region. "As tempting as that sounds…" she said ruefully. "We can't spend the whole day…" she waved at them and her bed.

"Why not?" Logan asked.

"Logan… it just… it's a little kinky, don't you think?" she asked, her eyes downcast as she blushed a little.

"And what's wrong with that? Kinky's okay. Kinky's good," Logan laughed.

She shot him a glare. "Besides, I have to study. Exams are in a week and…"

"Come on, Ace. You can't tell me that you don't already know all your stuff by heart," Logan interrupted her. "I bet all you did the past two weeks was study. Ever heard that you can over study? Take a break, just for today and then tomorrow you can go back to your books with renewed energy."

"I already took a break. Yesterday, this morning," Rory pointed out, but if Logan was correct, not with as much determination as usual.

Attaining hope from that, he moved closer to her. "Okay Ace, how about a deal. You spend this day with me and I promise I'll leave you alone until after the exams, unless you realize you just can't be without that superb guy that I am."

She rolled her eyes, but didn't answer. Still, he could feel victory close. "And if you're a really nice little girl, I'll even help you review for half an hour tonight," he tempted her into saying yes.

"An hour," Rory bargained.

Logan smiled and nodded. "An hour it is and I'll even reward you for every correct answer," he promised.

Rory shook her head doubtfully. "Oh boy…"

Logan just grinned. Yes! He'd have his Ace for the entire day – and night, he would make sure of that.

God, how he was going to enjoy showing her just how great it could be to be a little kinky!

* * *

TBC!

_(Author's Note: Okay, I've got to leave for Norway in 25 minutes. I finished this 30 minutes ago so no, I didn't manage to read it trough entirely or very carefully. I'll do that when I'm back but I think, most of you will look past the mistakes and just be glad that this chapter's _finally_ out, right? Hope you'll enjoy it and it was worth the wait!)_


	11. Lazy Hapiness

**Chapter 11: Lazy Happiness **

**(So… Good Talk)**

"Hey, you. Taking a break?" Logan answered his phone with a smile.

"Not yet, I still have four hours to study," Rory responded. "And _then_ I have time for a break."

"Ah… any chances that you'll want someone with you to make sure that you're really going to take a break?" Logan asked hopefully.

"Actually, that's why I called. You wouldn't happen to be free this evening, would you?" Rory asked, quite to Logan's surprise.

"The whole evening?" Logan repeated with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, yeah… I'm done with most of my studying and I thought, perhaps, we could take another try at that date we never seem to manage to have," Rory suggested.

Logan's smile widened. "Now that sounds like a plan. I'll come get you at eight o'clock, is that okay with you?"

"Perfect," Ace answered and he could hear the smile in her voice. "And what should I wear to meet the evening's program?"

"Just dress nicely," Logan told her vaguely. "See you later, Ace," he then told her and had hung up before she could inquire further on what to wear for their date. It was useless anyway. She looked beautiful, regardless of what she was wearing.

And even more beautiful without any clothes on, Logan thought with a rush of anticipation for the night.

When he turned, he saw Colin and Finn watching him with interest. He hoped his grin wasn't too stupefied. "You'll have to go to Sean's without me," he told them and sat down on their couch, taking a chip.

"Another date with Reporter Girl?" Finn wanted to know with a raised eyebrow.

Logan shrugged. "It's actually our first date, we never made it to a real one so far."

"Well, that depends on how you look at it," Colin protested. "We didn't see you again before Monday morning last weekend. And that evening, you vanished quite early as well."

"And on Tuesday you set us up for lunch," Finn added.

"Same on Thursday. And on Wednesday you canceled the spring trip meeting with the boys," Colin continued.

"To go 'study' with your Ace," Finn nodded with a dirty grin. "And now you're canceling yet another spring break meeting."

Logan shrugged again. "So what?" he asked, looking questioningly at his friends.

"Nothing…" Colin said. "You just spent quite some time with Rory this week."

Finn grabbed himself some chips as well. "Time you're unusually quiet about. And Lanny said he hardly sees you anymore. Especially in the morning. As if you haven't spent any nights at your room." He shot Logan a hooded look. "We're just wondering what's up with you?" he said casually.

With a frown, Logan looked from one to the other. "You got a problem with me going out with Rory?" he asked defensively.

"Now don't be ridiculous," Colin said, rolling his eyes. "We just noticed that you spend an awfully lot time with her."

"Yeah. As if you're together, you know. We're just wondering if you two…" Finn started to ask.

Still frowning, Logan shook his head. "We're just enjoying the little time we have before the exams," he made clear. "That's all."

"You sure about that?" Finn asked.

No. But Colin and Finn didn't need to know that. Did they? Truth was that Logan wasn't sure what was going on with him and Ace. Or rather with him. It was true that he had spent as much free time with Rory as she had allowed. This was surprisingly a lot of time for her, claiming to barricade herself in her room with her books. Not that he complained. He was rather happy about that. And as long as he was with her, he never thought about it, just enjoyed being with her. But that in itself was what confused him. He never spent so much time with any other girl he was sleeping with. Sure, Ace was different. She was a friend. She was smart, witty. And though she didn't have much experience, she was definitely excelling in the physical part as well. So wasn't it normal that he spent more time with her than he did with the bimbos he usually went out with? Perhaps. But that didn't explain this indescribable need he was feeling to be with her, to spend the night with her. Not just having an enjoyable time with her, but sleeping with her, spending the whole night with her. Sometimes even only cuddling her.

And then, there was the sex in itself.

"Logan?"

Startled, he looked up and realized that he had totally spaced out on his friends. He stared at his hands for a moment and spread them, hesitating. Finally, he looked up. "Have you ever… I mean… did it ever feel… different for you?" he asked slowly, quietly.

"Different?" Colin repeated with a frown. "You mean…?"

Logan nodded.

"Different how?" Finn wanted to know.

Logan glanced at him, then looked away and shrugged. "I dunno… just… different."

He really had no words for it. It just was different from anything he had felt during sex before. It was more… intense. Held more sensations. Felt better. So much better. It was as if everything was enhanced, a notch superior than anything he had experienced so far. In part, it was almost scary. Still… he wouldn't want it any other way. Didn't mean though that it didn't puzzle the hell out of him.

"In a good way different or in a bad way?" Finn inquired further.

For a moment, Logan thought about his answer. Instinctively, he'd say yes, definitely in a good way. But was it, really? He was fast growing addicted to her, never getting enough of her, his Ace. And something deep down warned him, that it was dangerous, that she meant too much already to him, way too much. Still…

"Good," he answered slowly and nodded. "Definitely good."

Instead of answering immediately, Finn and Colin exchanged a look. One of_ those_ looks. The kind of looks they always exchanged since he had met Rory. The looks he sure as hell grew tired of.

"Perhaps it's because Rory is different," Colin finally suggested.

Logan rolled his eyes. "Yeah, thanks, would never have figured that one out by myself," he replied sarcastically.

Another look between Colin and Finn. Logan grinded his teeth.

"Or… it's different, better, because Rory's more important to you than any other girl before," Finn suggested, his green eyes boring into Logan's.

Logan frowned, but didn't answer. It felt true to him, but… it also sounded… dangerous.

Colin sighed and shook his head. "Because, perhaps, only perhaps, you fell in love with her? And what you do is not having sex with her… but making love?" he asked blatantly.

Logan's head shot up to stare indignantly at Colin. Incredulous, he shook his head and got up. "You're crazy," he declared and before Colin could defend himself, Logan stormed out, shaking his head at his stupidity.

What had he been thinking to even start with that topic with Finn and Colin? He really should know better than to entrust those idiots with something like that! What did they know after all? Nothing!

Love? Ha!

Okay, so yes, something was different with his Ace. But love? Please! Probably Finn was right: His Ace simply meant more to him than any other girl because she was first and foremost a friend and not a bed bunny. He knew her better and because of that, the sex with her was better and he enjoyed spending some additional time with Rory. He surely wasn't so stupid to fall in love, even when it was with such a great, amazing girl like his Ace. A high society girl even. Love wasn't in his agenda for the next few years. Hell, actually, love wasn't even included in any of his plans for the future. Huntzberger men weren't allowed to love, didn't have the chance to love.

Especially not a girl with ambitions for a career of her own. A girl who wasn't interested in being content as a trophy wife, to always live in his shadow. A girl who wasn't interested in his money, his family, the power that came with his name, no, a girl who actually almost hated all of that.

Logan stopped and stared blindly ahead.

Fuck, what the hell was he thinking?

* * *

"So… that's how you'd have planned our first date."

Still exhausted from their latest activity, Logan managed to lift his head to gaze down at Rory, barely, and gave a nod. "Hmm…" he murmured. Talking whole sentences wasn't yet an option.

"Nice…" she commented. "Impressive, classy, but still thoughtful." She nodded. "And it might have even let you have what you ultimately wanted."

Okay, exhausted or not, but really… Logan lifted an eyebrow. "It _might_ have?" he repeated, incredulous.

Ace grinned. "Yeah, might have. Though… I think the chances are slightly against you."

When he just continued to stare at her, she laughed quietly and raised her hand to ruffle his hair. Something he usually hated. Somehow, he didn't mind Rory doing it that much. It felt kind of nice.

"I'll let you know that I'm not the kind of girl easily impressed by money," she informed him.

"Aren't you?" Logan played along. It wasn't as if he didn't know that already.

"Hmm…" she answered with a nod while running a finger down his chest – as far as she could as they still were lying pressed together, with her under him. "Showing up with a limo and driver in tow is a bit much. Though it had been nice to see Frank again."

As much he had guessed, after all, Rory had outright refused to let Frank or Logan pull up the window separating the back of the limo from the driver and had talked more with Frank than with Logan on the way to the restaurant.

"To pick out the Italian place where we had our first meal together, despite not being the fancy place you usually go to, was a big hit though." She gave him a feather-light kiss. "Many, many plus points, especially the way you treated the wait staff, like you're a guest at a friend's place, not a paying customer." Another kiss, deeper this time, and Logan felt some of his energy rush back to certain parts of his body.

When she drew back, he moaned a protest, but she didn't listen and instead gently slapped his head. "Then of course, you had to ruin it with your pulling out the big guns for the entertainment part of the evening." Ace shook her head. "It's pretty bragging to tell a girl to pick out between a concert in New York, a play in the theater and a movie première, all in New York for which you had tickets." Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Bragging is a major turn off, Huntzberger. Do you really get far with such things?" she wanted to know.

This time it was Logan who gave a light kiss, before he shrugged and grinned lopsidedly at her. "I haven't had complaints so far," he told her confidently. Though to be honest, he usually didn't go to all that trouble. And most other girls he had gone out with would just have loved the limousine and the options.

"Jeez, how can they be so cheap?" Ace asked with an eyeroll.

"No idea," Logan murmured and lifted himself a little so he had a better angle to give her a long, deep kiss. He really had other things in mind than to talk about some bimbo girls.

"But in the end we landed in the black and white cinema, watching a film you must have seen at least a dozen times, judging from all the comments you've made," he said quietly once their lips parted again.

Her eyes were shining with amusement, when she gave a lazy nod. "I'd say it's been at least three dozens times. But what can I say… you never grow tired watching and mocking 'The Mummy', neither the old one, nor the new one. Though I prefer the old one."

"And I got what I wanted, in the end," Logan added with not just a little smug.

The smugness earned him a slap on his behind. Not that he minded, not at all, for that it was too sexy… too dirty his Ace would probably say.

"Yeah, but just because you went along with my plan and gave those tickets to other people, even having Frank drive those strangers to New York," she corrected. "And because this time, it wasn't the first time," she added and wriggled a little under him in not at all an innocent way, and that made Logan gasp as a rush of heat surged through his body.

And the kiss she gave him… it left him breathless and hungry for more. But before he could dive in for more, she halted him by the sudden seriousness in her eyes. "I'm glad it happened the way it had," she whispered.

Logan shook his head and gently brushed a wisp of hair out of her face. "You're a strange girl, Ace," he said with a smile.

For a moment it seemed as if she wasn't quite sure to glare or laugh, but in the end, Ace grinned. "I think I'll take that as a compliment."

"It is," Logan confirmed and really, it was. He preferred the constant surprises she threw at him to the predictability of other girls. It may make life a lot more complicated – but sure as hell a whole lot more interesting. Besides, _In Omnia Paratus_.

"I mean, it was so cute, how you climbed through my window," Ace then added.

Logan stopped on his way kissing down her neck and looked up to stare at her, unbelieving. "_Cute_?"

Ace nodded. "Very cute and adorable."

He scowled. "I don't do cute and adorable."

Her eyes glistened with mischief – and something else. "Sorry buddy, but it was major cute and adorable, all right."

That little witch! "I'll show you cute and adorable," he promised with a growl, just before he descended on her with fervor. He'd be damned if she found what he was going to do to her still cute!

* * *

"Now tell me that had been cute," Logan demanded a long while later.

Rory opened an eye to look at him. Then she opened the other one – to give a perfect eyeroll. "Okay, Neanderthal, this wasn't cute in the slightest. Not a tiny bit cute at all. All very manly and powerful and dirty."

Her voice was heavy with sarcasm and mock. But she looked so cute that Logan decided to let it go. Though he'd be damned if he admitted that out loud. Shaking his head, he slipped deeper into his mattress, pulling Rory with him so they could lie more comfortably in his bed. As Lanny had already gone home for the spring break, finished with all of his midterms, they had profited from that fact and gone to his dorm for a change. It was nice to be already at home, but still… Logan couldn't quite explain it, but despite Paris being in the other room, not to mention occasionally Doyle, Logan preferred being in her room over his. Somehow it was a lot cozier and homey there, filled with her books and loads of music CDs and DVD's. Not to mention all the tons of stuff she had stuffed in the little space she had. And he couldn't help but wonder if Rory felt the same way. So far she had said nothing. On the other hand, this was her first night in his room.

His eyes gazed around, trying to see what she may see. He had no idea. Probably, she found it too expensive, too luxurious. Perhaps even too manly. He did know though that there were a few things he wasn't keen on her seeing. Foremost were the pictures of her he had on his laptop. Thankfully, the chances were slim of her seeing them. There were also the few things he had started to keep for his overnight guests. Or rather said, for the girls he brought to his room. A few toiletry items, a bathrobe, some things to put on for the way back should they not be able to find their clothes… or should they not be presentable anymore.

Nope, he definitely didn't want Ace to find those… they may not be dating exclusively, having agreed on keeping it casual… but every instinct he had told him to not let her see those things. Perhaps he should find a safer place for those things when she was staying over. At least until spring break, that was, if they even had time to spend a little time together until then. They were in the middle of midterms after all. Rory may have allowed herself a few breaks here and there, and now tonight's time off, but he knew that in the coming week he probably would be glad if she allowed him to have coffee with her, let alone to do something more. And to be honest, he himself had still quite a lot to do. Especially that Ethics paper that was due Friday and had had barely time to work on it so far, thanks to his father's stupid trip.

Still… he didn't like the thought of not seeing her as often as he was accustomed to now after this week, especially as spring break would mean for him to not being able to see her at all for a week. Unless…

His hand caressed her arm and gently nudged her. "Hey Ace?"

"Hmm?" she asked sleepily.

"Got any plans for spring break?" he asked.

"Mmhh. Going home. Get some job for the holidays," she answered as she snuggled closer into him.

Gently, Logan rubbed her back in an up and down motion. "Why don't you come with me?" he invited her.

Okay, girls weren't usually part of the plan on their spring break trips, at least not bringing girls along on the trip. But Finn and Colin surely wouldn't mind and Logan could get a separate cabin for Rory and him, he was sure. And the other guys… well, he guessed they just would have to deal with it. Yeah… that would be great if Ace just came along with him!

She opened her eyes to look at him, surprised. "With you?"

Eagerly, Logan nodded. "Yeah. The guys and I go to the Mount Southington Ski Area which is near Hartford. It will be fun."

She frowned. "I don't know how to ski."

Now why didn't that surprise him at all? "I can teach you," he told her confidently. "And you don't have to ski. There are plenty of other things to do. You could read at the open fire and party with us, once we're back. Or you could convince me to stay with you," he suggested with a meaningful glance.

She smiled, but he could already see the refusal in her eyes. "As tempting as that sounds, I'm sorry, but I can't," she indeed told him.

"Ace…"

But she shook her head. "Really, I can't. I need to find a job and earn some money as I'm nearly broke since I lost my job at the canteen. Besides, I'm sure it's fun, but it sounds more like a boy thing."

Frustrated, Logan thought about something to say to convince her to still come with him. But he could see that she wouldn't change her mind. Disappointed, he sighed and drew her a bit closer to him. "Okay. But you'll miss a blast," he told her grudgingly.

"I'm sure," she nodded. "And thanks for the invitation, that's nice of you and the boys. But I really can't, not this time."

Logan nodded. "It's okay. It was just an idea."

'Because I'll miss you so much,' he almost said but held back from saying it.

This was ridiculous. It was only a week after all. And there would be plenty of other girls.

But none of them would be his Ace.

* * *

Time flew by and already, the last day before spring break arrived. And as predicted he had hardly seen her the whole week. Actually, he hadn't seen Rory at all, only had spoken on the phone with her three times. And exchanged a few text messages. Thankfully, he had a lot of work to do himself plus several midterm tests. Still… he had missed her a lot and he wasn't quite sure what to think about that.

Then again, this was nothing new. Somehow, with his Ace, he seemed to be very unsure about a lot of things.

Yet, when he finally saw her again, placing an order at one of the coffee carts, joy engulfed him like he never felt before and it didn't bother him at all. He just quickened his steps to get to her as fast as possible.

But she dropped some coins just before he got to her and he couldn't help but smile at the face she made as she crouched down to pick them up again. So cute! Finally reaching her, he got down to help her pick up her coins as well.

"This would definitely qualify as a cute meet if we hadn't already met," he told her.

She looked up and there was the blush he loved so much. "Logan, hey. This is nice and embarrassing," she greeted him.

Logan nodded to the bushes nearby. "Are we going after the rollers? A couple of them are headed into the bushes."

Rory shook her head and stood up again, Logan following her. "No, I think I've supplied people with a sufficient amount of silly images of me for one day," she said reluctantly.

Logan thought differently, but he let it go and instead turned to the coffee guy. "Small coffee for me and put the lady's on my tab too," he ordered.

Of course, Rory hurried to protest. "No, Logan, you don't have to do that."

No, he didn't, but he wanted to. Besides, she had mentioned something about being broke and he had heard a part of her placing the order. Apparently, she hadn't exaggerated. Inwardly, he shook his head. What an irony. A Gilmore broke. It was ridiculous. But somehow he didn't think that Ace was quite the same opinion, so he simply cracked a joke. "Ace, I can't take a chance of you pulling out that purse again. Someone might get hurt," he said as he already handed the coffee cart guy the money for their coffee. He took the cups and handed one to Rory.

"Okay, well, thank you," she finally accepted but she still seemed a bit uncomfortable letting him pay for her coffee.

Another thing that was ridiculous. They have been going out and he sure as hell had enough money to afford a cup of coffee for his girl. Hell, she had spent more than a hundred bucks for books on his tab without blinking and now she was uncomfortable letting him pay for coffee? Strange, strange girl. He still liked her though – a lot.

"So… I stopped by the paper the other day to see you," he told her casually as they moved along.

"Really?" she asked, sounding surprised, but pleased.

Logan nodded. "And then I tried to sneak out when I realized you weren't there. But our omnipresent editor cornered me," he continued, making a face. He wasn't sure if it was his hanging around with Paris or if Logan's father had another chat with him, but damn if Doyle hadn't been very insistent on Logan doing more for their paper if Logan wanted to stay on the staff. So he had gotten an assignment for the first edition after the spring break. Yeah, yadayay. "Does Doyle ever leave that place," he wanted to know, a bit miffed.

"Unfortunately, yes, otherwise I would be denied the regular pleasure of seeing him in 'Property of Alcatraz' pajama pants," Ace replied and at that image, Logan shuddered a bit.

"Thanks for the image," he said sarcastically. Still, the remark reminded him of her room and of the hours he had spent there lately. Thinking of, it was high time to finally taste those luscious lips of her again! "Hey, come here," he said and pulled her with him to the corner, determined.

"What are you doing?" Ace managed to protest before he shut her up with a deep, hungry kiss.

"So that's what you're doing," Rory said softly once they parted.

But Logan was far from having enough. After all, a whole week had gone by since he had seen her, let alone kiss her. "What'd you think I was doing?" he murmured as he honed in for another kiss.

At first, he could feel her sink into their kiss, but then she pulled away to look around, worriedly. "People will see," she protested.

"I don't care if people see," he told her, honestly, as he tried to kiss her again.

But she avoided his lips. "A professor will see you, and he'll take advantage of the fact that you're distracted and pull you in, make you take a midterm," she worried and Logan was pretty sure that she was only half joking.

With a sigh, Logan relented, for the moment. "I'm done with them," he informed her.

Her eyes widened. "With your midterms?"

Logan nodded. "I already took the ones I couldn't get out of."

She frowned a little. "Then why are you here? You're going off skiing, aren't you?" she asked.

"I just have to drop off a paper for my Ethics class by eleven thirty and then I'm off," he explained.

Her frown deepened. "It's eleven twenty-five," she stated.

"So we're swimming in time," Logan unworriedly replied and pulled her against his body, preventing any other protest from her with a kiss.

This time, she melted more into it, or so he thought, until he felt her slipping her hand into his bag and sure enough, she was already breaking off their kiss to look down at his bag.

"What are you doing?" he asked, perplexed.

She was totally focused on searching his bag now. "I want to see your paper," she told him.

Okay, here he was, kissing her senselessly, or so he had thought, and she wanted to see his paper?!? "Your mind is a mysterious thing," he let her know, shaking his head, unbelieving.

Finally, she looked up to meet his eyes again. "Come on. I'm dying to know what your take on ethics is. For instance, are you for it or against it?" she inquired and Logan was pretty sure that she was honestly interested in his answer.

A very strange girl, indeed.

And she was so not getting her way this time. "No way. It's too dangerous," he told her.

"Dangerous?"

Logan nodded. "I actually worked on this thing. It goes from my hand to the professor's."

"Like I'm going to lose it!" Rory outrageously protested.

"I saw you with your coins," Logan teased her. "Plus, let's remember Hemingway."

That threw her off. "What about him?"

"Trusted that wife of his with the only copy he had of the novel he was working on. The silly woman lost it," Logan told her.

Immediately, she shook her head. "Not so. I know the story." Just like he had expected. That was something he loved about being with her. He could throw her any kind of word clue and almost always she had an outright answer ready for it. "Hemingway left it on a plane. His wife had nothing to do with it," she continued to correct him.

"That's not the way I heard it," Logan told her with a smile.

"Well, you heard it wrong," Rory insisted.

Stubborn, his Ace was, wasn't she?

Logan's smile intensified. "How much you want to bet?" he challenged her.

"All the money in my purse, plus a million dollars," she answered with a smile, leaning closer to him.

"Well, my spelling stinks. Take my word for it," he replied and pulled her closer, not able to withstand the temptation to kiss her again any longer. Probably their last kiss for quite a while, he suddenly realized and pressed her slim form even more against his body, deepening the kiss.

"You'll call me from the cabin?" Rory hopefully asked, once they parted again.

Was she kidding? She could bet he'd call. "Absolutely," he assured her, weighing if he could afford to kiss her again like he so badly wanted to. But that was the problem. Merely kissing her, as great as that was, would never satisfy him. And if he did kiss her again now, he was pretty sure he'd take her back to his dorm to just satisfy that hunger. Sadly though, he really needed to hand that paper in. Damn it. Reluctantly, he let her go and stepped away from her.

"Thanks for the coffee," she said.

"Anytime," Logan told her and looked back to her. "Better have that million bucks ready when I get back, and I don't accept coins!" he reminded her.

"No promises," she called back at him, just before he vanished around the corner. A last stolen glance back let him see her smiling, happy face.

Well, so was he.

* * *

"What's the matter with you, Huntzberger? You've got three girls dying for you to acknowledge them and you don't even spare them a glance!"

Annoyed, Logan looked up from the book he was reading and shrugged. "Not interested," he told Robert shortly.

"Oh, come on, look at Nadia for instance. She's great!" Robert said, unbelieving, pointing at a blond girl standing nearby and staring over.

Logan sighed. "Look, if you want her, why don't you go after her. Just leave me alone," he again tried to get rid of Robert.

But Robert narrowed his eyes. "So I guess it's true."

"What's true?" Logan asked with a frown.

"That you've fallen for that Gilmore girl," Robert said and shook his head. "Never thought you'd fall so soon. Then again, she does have a great body." He leered. "And they say that bookish girls like her can be quite a volcano. Say, is it true? Is she that great in bed? What am I talking, of course it's true, otherwise, why would you be so hung up on her to ignore such nice girls like Nadia over there."

Blind rage overtook Logan and with a snap, he closed his book and was rising out of his chair. No one talked like this about his Ace, let alone Robert the asshole.

At that moment, Colin appeared, slinging an arm around Robert. "Hey buddy, come on, got something to show you," he said and already, he dragged Robert away with him, away from Logan.

Not that that would have stopped Logan from teaching him to not talk about his girl like that. But Finn showed up out of the blue as well and firmly pushed Logan back onto his chair, plopping down onto the chair beside Logan. "Let it be, mate," he said mildly, pushing a drink into Logan's hand.

"Have you heard what he just said?!" Logan though asked, still furious.

Finn shrugged. "He's an asshole, nothing new there. You know him. He always tries to get at you, or me, for that matter. You give in, he wins and now that's something I really would hate to see… even if that would mean I'd get the pleasure of seeing you beat that snaky face bloody."

His blood was boiling, but Logan could see the point in Finn's argument there.

Fuck.

"Besides, you know, I'm not surprised that he's puzzled a bit by your behavior. A lot of people are." His green eyes bored into Logan's. "It's spring break, the big, great party time, yet all you do is mope around, not doing much more than skiing like a devil or burying your nose in a book." He shrugged. "No wonder people talk."

"I do not mope around," Logan protested and took a big swing of the drink Finn had brought him.

He really wasn't. But three days and already, Logan was bored out of his mind. The first day hadn't been so bad, he had drunk and partied with the guys but one could only party so much before it got boring.

Finn laughed. "Call it what you want, but you're sure not this year's party king," he stated good-naturedly, and then he quieted. "If you miss her that much, why don't you call her and invite her up here? There's enough space and booze for another hot girl after all."

Uncomfortable, Logan took another sip. He knew exactly whom Finn was talking about and in a way, it didn't feel right for him that his friend had so easily guessed the source of his boredom – but in another way, he liked it. Talk about confusing. He avoided Finn's eyes. "I already asked her. She can't come, needs to earn some money," he admitted.

"Did you?" Finn asked, but not sounding surprised at all.

"Yeah. Why? That a problem?" Logan asked defensively.

"What? No, not at all. Just find it interesting. You never before invited any of your girls along to any of our trips," Finn mentioned casually. Too casually.

Logan refused to say anything to that. Not that he knew what to say. After all, he was well aware of that fact himself.

"So she can't come. Too bad. It sure would have been great to have Reporter Girl here," Finn continued after a moment. Then he shrugged. "But who knows? Perhaps she has a bigger blast than we all together have. What she has told us about that town she comes from is really something."

Another pause in which Logan chose not to say anything.

"Hmm, maybe, it would be worth a shot to go check that place out, what do you think?" Finn asked, his gaze lying heavily on Logan.

Logan frowned. Go to her town? He didn't think so, no. That felt too much like commitment to Logan and as hung up he may be on his Ace, he wasn't ready to face her family and friends in what sure would look like a gesture that only a boyfriend would do. Nope, surely not. But…

Finn jumped up, pulling his shirt over his head. "You know what this party is missing? A little bit of nakedness! And whose body would be better to go naked than this Adonis body of mine?" he remarked, kicking off his shoes.

Alarmed, Logan's head shot up. "Uh, Finn, _no_!"

"Hush, hush, you're just jealous!" Finn waved away Logan's protest and opened the fly of his jeans.

"Finn!" Logan again tried to stop the Australian.

Finn's jeans fell and already, Finn pulled at the waistband of his boxers.

Rolling his eyes, Logan gave up and quickly stood up to leave the cabin. He really didn't need to see Finn naked – again. Outside, he took a deep breath of the cool, fresh air. It was beautiful here, no doubt about that. And the slopes were great. But… it definitely was also nothing new for Logan. Nothing he hadn't already experienced. He had skied on better slopes in France, Austria, Switzerland. He had been at other beautiful winter places. Had participated on bigger and better parties, spring breaks. And Logan loved to do something new.

So Rory needed to work. He had called her the other day and apparently, she had gotten herself a job in her town's bookstore. A dangerous combination in Logan's eyes, even if he did see the sense in it. But Rory had also mentioned that she'd be finished with her assigned work within a couple of days… if she didn't let herself get too much distracted by the books. So perhaps she would be okay to join him at least for some days.

But not here. Not just because he was fairly sure that she would refuse to come here again, claiming she couldn't afford it – and definitely didn't want Logan to pay for her, but also because Logan didn't want her here. There would be too many people, too many distractions and Logan didn't want any distractions. He wanted to be able to concentrate solely on his Ace. And yeah, he wanted her all for himself and certainly not exposed to the leery eyes of Robert or the talk of those bimbo girls like that Nadia. Of course there were many places he could think of, but all of those places would give her the same reason to refuse coming just like her coming here. Money. But where else could they meet and have time for each other without costing anything?

There weren't such places! Everything cost at least something…

Unless….

Brightening up, Logan quickly went over it mentally, cheering up with every check he could make on the pro list in his head.

Yeah, that could actually work. And it was perfect. It wouldn't cost anything, to either of them; he'd have her solely for his own and the best of all: it was something he definitely had never done before.

Grinning, he didn't hesitate any longer and quickly went back into the cabin, going over to his room to gather up his things.

* * *

"Finn's naked again," Colin said with a sigh, coming into the room he shared with Logan and Finn.

Logan nodded. "I've noticed. I tried to stop him but you know how he gets when he wants to streak."

Colin nodded and frowned. "What are you doing?" he wanted to know, watching as Logan stashed some of his shirts into his bag.

"What does it look like? I'm packing," Logan told him, looking around for his disc case. He'd need it, it was full with music discs Rory had included on the list of music he absolutely needed to have.

"Why?"

Ah, there it was! Quickly, Logan went over to get his disc case and glanced at Colin. "'cause I'm leaving," he pointed out the obvious.

Colin's frown deepened. "Why?" he asked again. "Look, if it's because of what Robert had said, I can talk with him, warn him to not talk like that about Rory, but really, you don't have…"

"What?" Logan briefly stopped what he was doing to stare at Colin, incredulous. Then he laughed. "Oh… no. I'm not leaving because of that idiot." His eyes darkened. "Though he better never again talk about Ace like that or your friend or not, I'm going to teach him a lesson."

Colin waved at Logan bag. "But then why…"

With a sigh, Logan met his friend's eyes. "I just have enough of being here. So I'll head back, see if Ace will join me for the next few days," he explained.

For a moment, Colin held his eyes. "You're going to meet Rory?" he repeated.

Logan nodded and zipped his bag close. "If she wants to." He grinned. "Though I'm betting I can convince her." After all, he has known her for over half a year and he has been going out with her for almost three weeks now. Yes, he could convince her.

"I'm sure you can," Colin said slowly.

In one swift move, Logan shouldered his bag. "I need to go or I'll miss the bus going down to town. Send my ski equipment after me, will you?" When Colin nodded, Logan grinned again and waved. "See you. Oh, and see to it that Finn doesn't leave the cabin. Remember Aspen."

With that last reminder, Logan was off – back on his way to his girl.

* * *

Logan had barely unpacked his things and was out of the door to go get some supplies when his cell phone rang a very particular tune. Perfect. With a smile, he answered it. "Hello?" He sat down on a nearby bench.

"We were both wrong," Ace's voice came over the phone, not bothering to lose time on pleasantries.

Just as he liked it. "About?" he wanted to know, going over the possibilities. And with his Ace, there were quite some possibilities.

"Hemingway's manuscripts were stolen in Hadley's suitcase at the Gare de Lyon," she informed him.

Ah, Hemingway. "Huh," he answered with a smile. Trust her to find out the truth about that.

"Yep. Just thought you should know," Rory said. "We're both dumb," she finished.

Logan smile grew. "Guess we found each other."

"Guess we did," Rory confirmed. "So… how's the outing in the woods going?"

"It was going fine until Finn decided to go through one of his naked phases," Logan told her, grabbing the opportunity to lead her to what he really wanted to talk about.

"Yikes," Ace said and he imagined her making a face.

"Yeah," Logan nodded. "Suddenly, the cabin seemed very small.

"I bet," she replied sarcastically and Logan could hear the amusement in her voice.

"Plus, it got boring, and there's too many people there I know, so I decided to cut my skiing trip short," Logan continued to lead her to the strike.

"Yeah?" Rory asked, surprised. "Where are you now?"

Taking a deep breath, Logan stood up. "Yale."

"What?" Rory exclaimed.

"Yep. Seems like I got the whole place to myself, too," Logan told her.

"I bet. Everybody's gone for spring break," Rory said knowingly.

Yep, that they were. And Logan wouldn't want it any other way. "You know, it's nice like this. Very quiet. Lots of privacy," he recited, giving her a few points for her pro and con list before he delivered his strike. "It's too bad you're not here."

There was a small pause on the other end of the line which made Logan's heart beat fast. "And why is that?" she then asked.

"I just think you'd like it," Logan told her. He would make sure of that.

"Well, take me a picture," she flippantly told him but Logan could sense that she was already contemplating joining him.

Just a little more convincing, pushing. And he was a master at convincing. "You know, if, by chance, you decided to cut your spring break short, you could be here with me to see it yourself."

"Oh, really?"

She smiled, he was sure of that. He could hear it. And he was pretty sure he had won. "Just a suggestion, Ace," he said with a shrug, but smiling himself.

"Well, I'll think about it," she told him and before he could say anything else, she ended the call.

Slowly, Logan shut his phone close, thoughtful. Okay, that wasn't quite the answer he had hoped for, but then, it was better than an outright refusal like she had given him when he had invited her to the ski trip. And he was fairly sure that she'd come.

So with a nod, he put his cell phone away and continued his way to his car to go get those things he'd need for the coming days.

Most of all, he needed coffee. Lots and lots of coffee, seeing as the cafeteria and the carts were closed. And food. He planned to take her out a few times but he had seen his Ace eat. He definitely would need food. And last but not least, condoms. Because he planned to ravish her as often and at as many times as he could and his stash needed restocking or he wouldn't be able to do that.

He grinned. Oh, he thought, one of those big family packs should do it for the time being.

* * *

By nighttime, Logan was seriously worrying that he had purchased all those supplies for nothing. He hadn't heard back from Rory yet and slowly, he was starting to believe that she wouldn't come after all.

So when his phone rang with its special tune he lunged for it quite desperately.

"So?" he asked hopefully.

"Open your door," Ace simply said.

"Why? You wouldn't happen to be standing in front of it, would you?" he wanted to know while walking over to his door.

"Well, I guess you'll just have to see and find out, won't you?" she replied, unfazed.

He guessed he did. Not waiting any longer, Logan opened his door with a big smile – and smiled to nothing. No Rory.

Over the phone, he could hear Rory laughing.

"Ha, ha, very funny," Logan said with a frown.

"Yeah, thanks, I think so too," Rory agreed, still chuckling. "Do you really think I'm so predictable?" she asked dryly. "Boy, mister, you still got a lot to learn."

"Well, that's just what I planned to do in the next few days but guess what, my study object is still missing," Logan told her.

"Too bad," Rory replied and that was that.

Logan loved to play around with her – but right now he just wanted to be with her, not merely talk with her. "Where are you?" he wanted to know, hopefully not in a whining way.

"In a physical or philosophical way?" she avoided giving a direct answer though.

"Ace," he warned her, then sighed. Okay, time to get out the big guns. "I miss you," he added softly.

For a moment, there was silence on the other end. "I miss you, too," she finally said as softly too. "Thankfully though, I finished the inventory of the books in record time, packed my things and raced over here to now stand right behind you so you can just turn around and finally kiss me."

Logan swiveled around and indeed, there his Ace stood, smiling, her eyes glistening and the next second, Logan had her scooped up in his arms, kissing her for all its worth.

Finally.

* * *

They hadn't made it to the bed on their first time. Nor on the second and not on the third time either. Eventually though they did land on his bed and there they lay now, happily satisfied for the moment.

"I'm glad you could make it," Logan said quietly, playing with strands of her hair.

"I'm glad you cut your trip short," Ace said in return and one of her hands caressed his side.

"Definitely one of my better ideas," Logan nodded. "Almost as good as it was to decide to come back to Yale early. I love that we have the whole place to ourselves."

Rory nodded. "It is nice, isn't it? Just like I imagined how it would be last year when I had the same idea for spring break."

"You did?" Logan asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"Yeah. I figured it would be deserted and wonderfully peaceful. I'd have my privacy to learn and study peacefully, undisturbed by nothing and no one," Rory answered.

"I sense a but," Logan commented.

Rory laughed. "And what a but it was. It turned out that Paris had the same idea."

"And there goes your peace," Logan laughed.

"Exactly. Plus, it was so cold like it hadn't been in a decade. And one of our roommates was going to Florida, driving all the way through," Rory told and looked up at him through her eyelashes. "It really was cold. Then, Paris started to think that she was doing this spring break thing all wrong and Terence, her life coach could only agree. And before I knew it I was in a van with Paris and two other people, driving to Florida."

"No way!" Logan exclaimed, shaking his head. His Ace on a regular spring break trip to the south? Never.

"Yes way," Rory though confirmed. "After terrible, long, and endless hours of driving we finally reached the hotel we were to stay in. Of course it was full and each and every one of the guests were students, most of them first year students like us."

"Not very surprising, it is the traditional trip for the freshmen," Logan said with a nod.

"Yeah, I guess so. Still, neither Paris nor I could really get into the right spirit. The first night we slept through. The next day, we did the tan yourself by the pool but in the evening, we stayed in and watched 'The Power of Myth'."

Logan laughed. Now that sounded more like his Ace.

"The next day though we definitely went along with the spirit. We went out to a club, not having much fun, I tried to flirt with a guy with whom I had been doing the whole 'eyes meeting briefly and look away again' routine for two days but he had lost his interest and therefore made myself look like an idiot, got kissed by Paris after which I needed to get drunk for the first time in my life and then of course couldn't resist going totally cliché and place a drunken phone call to my ex-boyfriend who was married by then, might I add. To be fair though, it had been Louise who had called him." She frowned. "Or had it been Madeline? I don't remember. Anyway, when I woke up the next day, with my first hangover ever, Paris and I decided to have experienced the whole spring break thing enough and headed back early, thank God."

For a long moment, Logan just stared at her, flabbergasted. He couldn't believe it. Even with Rory telling it herself, he couldn't believe it. God, what he would have given to see that! "You and Paris _kissed_?" he repeated, still stunned.

With a laugh, Rory shook her head. "Trust you to pick that out of all the things I told you. You're such a guy, Huntzberger."

"Well, I certainly hope so. And come on, you can't tell a guy that you kissed another girl, even if it was Paris, and expect him not to be turned on by that," he pointed out.

"First of all, Paris kissed me, out of the blue, so big difference, and secondly… so you're turned on?" she asked and her hand slipped lower to find out the answer herself. "Hmm, seems so. Jeez, how easy are you, exactly?"

"Easy enough to be turned on by the image of two girls kissing, apparently," he pointed out the obvious and rolled over her, the evidence of his being turned on pressing against her center. "But that's perfectly normal," he murmured after a chaste kiss. "I guarantee you, I'm classier, otherwise."

"Are you?" she asked, her voice raw.

Instead of answering, Logan just went on to prove it to her first hand.

* * *

"What's this?"

Eyes heavy with sleep, Logan squinted against the light to see what Rory was talking about. She was standing in front of his closet, holding the light blue silk morning robe he had bought for her only a week ago in her hands. He had walked by a store, had seen it and immediately had thought how great it would go with her beautiful eyes and already, he had been in the shop asking for one in her size.

"Just a morning robe. You can use it if you want," he mumbled, closing his eyes again. They barely had a couple of hours of sleep. How could Ace already be up and running around, drilling a hole into his stomach?

"And you would have a robe in your closet that's clearly for a woman, why again?" Rory asked and he was still way too sleepy to notice the steel in her voice.

Otherwise, he would not have said what he did say. "It has its uses. A lot more practical," he said with a yawn. "Just put it on if you need to. It's yours anyway."

"Oh… so am I to understand that you keep different robes for different women? Blue for me, green for that one, pink for this one and perhaps satin for yet another one?"

This time, Logan did hear the steel in her voice and he opened his eyes again to stare at her. "What?"

She was staring at the robe with an expression he couldn't quite figure out. Then she shrugged. "Just wondering how many of these you have," she said and there was something in her voice he couldn't name, but definitely didn't like.

He frowned. "Look, I just thought you'd be more comfortable if you had something to put on, should the need arise after we've landed here at my place. I do have a roommate after all and I don't want him to get a free peep show, nor do I think you'd want to give one, so I bought it for you when I saw it. That a problem? Because if it is, I can give it to my sister if you want," he explained, avoiding giving a direct answer.

A fact that didn't go unnoticed to Rory as he could tell by the slight narrowing of her eyes.

Damn.

Why was she making such a big thing out of this? It was just a silly robe after all, not some kinky playthings, not some silk satins nor anything else even remotely sexual. Just a robe. And no, he didn't have a whole closet with robes, just two more. This one was the first he had ever bought with a special girl in mind, easily seen by the plainness of the other two that were simply egg-yellow and cotton, definitely not silk. But he doubted that that would make any difference to Rory. And frankly, he wasn't ready to admit to her just how special she was to him.

She looked at the robe again for a moment and then hang it back into his closet again. "No, it's okay. Sorry. It was very thoughtful of you," she said quietly but didn't even look once at him. "I wanted to make some coffee. Want some as well?" she asked and she still didn't look at him.

Logan frowned. Damn it, how could he make this right again? Not that he was really sure what exactly was wrong. "You think there will be any left for me?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, deciding to go for the light banter they were so accustomed to.

This time she did glance back at him. Only fleetingly and her smile was weak, but it was something and already, Logan felt a bit better. "I can always make two pots," she answered nonchalantly.

"In that case, yeah, some coffee would be great," Logan nodded with a smile.

She gave a nod of her own and then left his room, grabbing his shirt from the day before on the way out and pulled it over her head.

With a sigh, Logan glared at the now closed closet. This definitely hadn't gone over too well. Not that he had had any real idea how it should have gone over. Perhaps, it would have been better to leave the robe in the bag and then formally give it to her when a good opportunity presented itself instead of just hanging it into his closet. But it had been automatic that he had done that. He glanced at the open door, biting his lips. He hoped Rory wasn't too hung up on this now. Thank God she was making coffee right now. From the way it looked, he would need it.

Thinking about it, some food could probably not hurt either. Yep, let her have some coffee and some food and hopefully, she'd feel better already. But he had seen her in the kitchen. She could make coffee, alright, but that was about it. If they wanted something to eat he'd better make it. Sighing, Logan rolled out of the bed, quickly put on some pajama buttons and went to join Rory in the little kitchenette in the common area.

By the doorway, he stopped for a moment to drink in the sight of what was in front of him though. His Ace, only clad in his shirt, leafing through the newspaper while the coffee maker was slowly brewing her very own nectar beside her. It was an intimate, homey, peaceful scene and something that was completely new to Logan – and definitely felt good, right.

And Heaven, she looked good in his shirt. Probably a lot better than she would ever look in the robe he had bought her.

Logan walked over to her, slipped his arms around her waist from behind and kissed her neck, inhaling the unique scent of hers. "Morning, Ace," he whispered into her ear.

He was pleased to feel her lean against him. "Morning," she answered and raised her face up to him so he could give her a proper good morning kiss.

Holding her as close to him as he could, he leaned his forehead against hers. "I thought you'd like some breakfast as well," he told her.

"Hmm, sounds good," she answered, nodding slightly.

Giving her a light kiss, he looked hopefully at her.

She laughed and pushed him away. "Uh, uh, mister. I'm not doing anything before I've had my coffee."

He looked over to the coffee maker. "It will still take a little time," he reasoned.

"Five minutes top," Rory nodded.

"Plenty of time," Logan pointed out.

She gave him a look. "We'll never be finished within five minutes."

"I can be quick," Logan assured her, having no doubts at all about that.

With an unbelieving laugh, she turned and gave him a quick kiss. "No, you can't. So hush and go get me some bagels."

With a heavy sigh, Logan turned away from her. "Yes, Ma'am."

"Call me Ma'am again and you won't get a second breakfast either," she warned with narrowed eyes just as the coffee maker beeped to announce that the coffee was ready. Brightening up, Rory quickly grabbed herself a big cup. "See? Told you there wasn't enough time. I really don't like cold coffee first thing in the morning."

"Now come on, it would still have been warm," Logan protested and got out two bagels, sliced and pushed them into the bagel toaster.

Rory was pouring herself her coffee as she looked up at him. "But not hot and steaming, just like the first coffee in the morning should be," she corrected him and inhaling the strong aroma of the fresh brew, she proved her words by then carefully sipping the steaming coffee, black and strong and pure just like it was. Her eyes closed in bliss and she let out a deep, contented sigh.

With a laugh, Logan shook his head. "I think I can call myself lucky that coffee is not a real man of flesh and blood – well, caffeine."

Her eyes opened again to glance at him amused. "That you can. You'd have not the slightest chance in hell otherwise," she confirmed his suspicion.

"Lucky me," Logan said dryly and, the toaster giving a beep as well, turned to get the bagels. He put them onto the counter and was just turning to get cream cheese out of the small refrigerator when Rory stepped to him to put her arms around his neck and gave him a deep kiss.

"But you're not a bad second choice," she murmured, letting go of his lips.

His arms slipped more tightly around her waist as he pressed her closer against himself. "Lucky me," he repeated and dove to steal another kiss from her.

* * *

TBC!

_(Author's Note: I guess one could look at this as a filler. Still, I very much enjoyed writing this one. And now, reading it through, I couldn't stop smiling. I hope that it will be the same way with you. I know the chapter is rather short, in comparison with other chapters, but frankly said, you can only write so much pillow talk and whatever more I could have written would have been just that. Pillow talk. So I thought I rather keep more sweet scenes for the chapters yet to come (Heaven knows we'll need them) and rather move on to, yep, the one and only Pulp Friction. I can't wait to tackle this one. But a fair warning: I already know it will be *long*, so you'll have to be a little patient. As you have been for a while, I know. But I was away in Spain for three weeks, with no internet access. I did have time to write a little, as you can see. There are more chapters to come, of my other stories. Thanks for all the nagging for this new chapter though – and all the many other comments you gave over the weeks. A wonderful welcome back present for me! And now, hope you enjoyed it and I got you to smile and sigh a little.)_


	12. Green Eyed Monster

**Chapter 12: Green Eyed Monster**

**(Pulp Friction)**

"Ugh, make it stop," Logan growled when the annoying ringing just wouldn't stop.

"Your room. You make it stop," Ace mumbled, burying her head deeper into Logan's neck.

"Not mine," he mumbled, groggily.

"Huh? Oh…"

Warmth left his side as Ace rolled away from him with a groan. "Call back later," she growled into the phone.

"Ugh, how old are you again?" she asked after a moment.

Missing her warmth, Logan slipped deeper under the covers. God, he was tired. Exhausted. And no matter how very damn good the reason for his utter exhaustion was, he swore to himself that he was never going to move again. Jeez, he wondered if he hadn't actually suffered a collapse or something.

Somewhere beside him, Ace yawned long and big. "No, I'm not doing kinky things right now. But I have done kinky things, a lot, hence I'm tired."

In some still barely functioning part of his brain, Logan dimly wondered who she was talking to. Probably some friend of hers.

"You know, I actually got almost worried a bit here. I'd have expected you to call at least nine times each day since I've come back in your insane and very disturbingly urge to catch me in flagranti doing things you definitely don't want to know about but still can't help but want to hear about anyway."

Okay, really, who was she talking to? The bed shifted slightly as Ace scooted up, leaning against the headboard. While she listened, she started to absentmindedly stroke through his hair with one hand. It was nice and Logan definitely savored the touch but that was all the reaction he could bring up in response.

Yep, Lorelai Leigh Gilmore the third, shy, bookish, innocent girl with scarce experience and admittedly a very quick and witted tongue, not to mention talented, had worn him, Logan Elias Huntzberger, ladies' man, out. Totally and completely. In less than a week. Five wonderful, heavily, fantastic days. But who'd have thought that one can actually have that much sex in those blissful five days and every precious time was still so damn, damn good? That family packet he had bought when coming back from the hills? Well, it wasn't empty yet, but he seriously doubted that it would last even two more days of this. If they were going to have any more sex at all which, right now, seemed unlikely. He. Just. Couldn't. Anymore.

Yep, that's right. Logan had to find out that apparently, there actually existed a limit to his stamina. And the strange thing? Instead of being shocked about that revelation, something he'd never have thought possible and should give him serious self-doubts now, he didn't mind it at all. In fact, he was proud about it. And damn smug.

Suddenly, an impossible high scream hurt his ears and head and he groaned when Ace bounced up and down beside him.

"Oh my God, really? He did? You did? You're back together? Oh, that's so great! But I knew it was going to happen, I mean he's so obviously crazy about you! And he really dipped you back, just like that? Wow! That's so romantic! But when…?"

Another one of that fucking high squeals.

"Five days ago? And you only tell me now? That's so mean! I'll never speak to you again. We're over."

A slight pause.

"Oh please, don't try to tell me you wanted Logan and me to have undisturbed fun. You forget who you're talking to. You just were too busy doing dirty things yourself to bother letting me know the teeny little detail that you and Luke finally got back together!"

That barely functioning brain of Logan frowned. Why did those last words of his Ace slightly disturb him?

"Ugh, gross, _way_ too many information. And I'm going to hang up now and you go back to – uh, you know what? Never mind." She seemed to listen for a moment, then she laughed. "Sorry, I believe we already did that, several times actually." Again a short pause before she laughed again, gleefully. "Hey, you started it, so don't complain now. Okay, tell Luke I said hi. And he better takes good care of you or I'll have to sic Emily on him again. Can you believe that she actually did that? – Yeah, I know. So weird. – Sure, will do. Oh and Mom?" she asked and Logan's eyes flew open, his fatigue momentarily forgotten. "I'm so happy for the both of you."

_Mom_? Had she really said _Mom_? She had talked to her _mother_? Talking about their _sex_?

Incredulous, he stared at her, flipping close her cell phone and throwing it back onto his night table. He was about to ask her about that Mom thing when suddenly, her mouth closed over his and she kissed him deeply and profoundly and his mind went numb.

"Wow, what has that been for?" he asked, once he found his voice back after she broke away.

Pure happiness pouring out of every pore of hers, she smiled at him, giving him a chaste kiss. "Mom and Luke are back together," she announced and laid her head onto his chest.

His arms sneaked around her to hold her. "They were broken up?" he asked, surprised.

She nodded. "Yeah, right after the wedding." She sighed and snuggled deeper into him. "And I felt so bad about it. No matter what Mom said, I just can't help but think that if Mom and Dad and Luke hadn't caught us making out it never would have come to that huge blown-out between him and Dad and then Luke and Mom. And Mom had been so crushed about it. I've never seen her like she had been when Sookie had called me to tell me to come back immediately, you remember? When you let me borrow Frank and the limo?" Raising her head, she smiled and kissed his chest, before laying her head back onto it. "But everything's okay again now and they're back together. We'll have to celebrate. If we ever manage to get up again."

He was with her on that one, he thought with a smirk as his fingers traced up her back. "Ace?"

"Hmm?"

"Is that why you've been so formal, that day, when you returned Frank?" he asked, suddenly finally being able to make sense of her strange behavior that day.

Indeed, she blushed, looking up at him apologetically. "Yeah I guess. I blamed me and therefore I blamed you and I just…"

"Hey," he stopped her, cupping her face. "Believe me, there's nothing you have to be sorry for. Absolutely nothing."

"No?" she asked, her eyes starting to gleam wickedly.

"No," he assured her, his grin matching the wickedness in her eyes.

"Good," she said, grinning and let her head drop back onto his chest.

For a while, the just laid there like that.

Eventually, Logan broke the silence though. "Uh Ace? Did I imagine that or did you indeed talk about us having sex with your _mother_?"

"Nope, you've heard just fine," was the uncaring prompt answer.

"Oh, well, just wanted to be sure about that," he muttered, frowning.

Her body vibrated with what he highly suspected to be laughter. She glanced up and yep, it definitely had been laughter. "Want to tell me you don't talk about your very healthy sex life with your mother?"

Ewww!!!!!!!

He made a disgusted face and glared at her. "Never dare to mention sex and my mother in one sentence again, you hear me, Rory?"

"I take that as a no," she replied dryly.

His glare intensified.

Laughing out loud, she kissed him and then buried her face into his neck. But he just knew that she was still laughing at him in her mind. He rolled his eyes but decided that it was the best thing for him to say nothing.

After a while though, he remembered something about her talk with her mother and despite himself, he couldn't help but be curious. "Hey Ace? What was all that about?"

"What do you mean?"

"The thing we already did? Several times?" he elaborated.

"Oh… Mom suggested us to try something she and Luke apparently had done this night, with very much success," she answered as if that was the most normal thing on Earth.

See? He had known that he actually didn't really want to know. But still… "And what was it?"

Laughing, she looked up. Then she proceeded to show him what it had been.

Oh… that. Yeah, that definitely was something real good. So good that he felt his body stand up to attention, no matter how overtired it was.

He held no complaints. So yeah, it was probably going to do him in once and for all, but hell, what a way to die.

* * *

"Gee, Huntzberger, what happened to you? You look as if you haven't slept in a month."

Finishing his yawn, Logan didn't even bother to glare over at Robert as he slid into the booth of his friends. It was Monday night, school had started again and while Rory had gone to her classes, of course, Logan had spent the time catching up on sleep. It hadn't been enough but at least he now felt like actually going out again and so had gone to join Colin and Finn at Rick's bar. His friends had only returned late in the afternoon as well and Logan knew that they would probably want a report of how his little holidays with Rory had been.

Finn, ignoring Robert as well by pointedly turning his back towards him causing the other one to grimace and thankfully wander away, gave Logan an intense once-over – and started to grin. "May, may, look who's grinning like a ladybird. A very lucky and happy ladybird."

Logan grinned back. "Do I?"

"Oh yeah, you do. Come on, mate, don't keep us waiting! What brought that disgustingly satisfied grin onto your face? I do hope it has something to do with why you indeed look a bit tired out!" Finn exclaimed with a leer.

Colin took a closer look at Logan as well and frowned. "Yeah, what's with that anyway? You never tire out. I've seen you party through five weeks in Rio, having one or more different girls every night and you still were fit as a poodle when we came back while even Finn had been worn out in the end. And now, after barely a week, you look like three times run over?" His eyes went wide. "Jeez, Logan, what did you and Rory do?"

Logan shrugged, but his smile stayed in place. It seemed as if he wasn't able to turn it off anymore actually. "Well, let's say that we've done a lot of calories burning and let's leave it at that."

"What? No, no, no! You can't leave us hanging like that! Details, Logan, details!" Colin protested, outrageous.

But Logan merely laughed and shook his head. "Sorry Colin, that's all I'm gonna say."

"Ugh, you used to be fun, you know. What happened to my best friend?" Colin remarked sadly, shaking his head.

Logan raised an eyebrow. "What's the matter with you? Did something happen after I've left?"

Finn snorted. "Just ignore him. He's miffed 'cause he hasn't got laid for four days. Plus, Daddy called right before we left for here to let him know that the results of the paternity test will be in by the end of the week and so he's expected to report back Friday."

"I did not get not laid for four days! I let you know that I very much had sex the night before last," Colin protested indignantly.

"In your dreams perhaps," Finn told him, rolling his eyes.

"How do you wanna know anyway? You've been drunk since Thursday morning," Colin asked, haughtily.

Finn simply grinned. "Aww Colin, when has that ever stopped me from noticing the obvious and important?"

"Please, you wouldn't notice your grandfather walking in in drags when you're that drunk," Colin pointed out.

"I said important, Colin," Finn reminded him good naturedly.

Colin opened his mouth but before one tone left his lips, he got interrupted.

"Is this boy's night only or can I join you?"

Surprised, Logan looked up and his smile widened as he quickly stood up, pulling Ace close to give her a deep kiss. God, he had missed her today. After having had her and her undivided attention 24/7 for almost a week it had been a real bummer to be alone again all day, not able to have his way with her whenever and however he wanted – and let her have her way with him of course.

"Hey you," he whispered, once he let go of her lips.

She smiled. "Hey."

Giving her another quick kiss, Logan ushered her into the booth beside him, sliding in behind her, his hand immediately going for hers.

"Love!" Finn exclaimed, grinning at her. "Thank Heaven you're here. We're dying to know what you've done to our boy here to let him look like he does!"

Raising an eyebrow, she looked at Logan, then back at Finn. "Whatever do you mean, Finn?" she asked innocently.

"Don't listen to him, Ace," Logan quickly intercepted his friends to elaborate on this, sending them a warning glare. He turned back to Rory. "What are you doing here? I'd thought you spend the night with studying."

"You know, contrary to common believe I do other things than studying occasionally," Rory answered with a secret smile.

Logan grinned. "Oh, believe me Ace, I know that. But still… It's Monday night. There's school tomorrow and I also know that you've never graced us with your presence at this time of the week because your first class on Tuesday starts at terrible seven thirty a.m.."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "You know my schedule that well?"

Smirking, he leaned into her. "It so happens that your schedule is of quite an importance to me," he told her, his voice low and sensual, while his hand under the table let go of hers to ran it up her thigh. He just couldn't help it: He couldn't _not_ touch her.

"Oh…" she murmured, her eyes turning slightly hooded.

"Jeez, get a room you two," Colin huffed, shaking his head.

"Chill, Colin. We'll get a room later," Rory surprised everyone, smiling wickedly over to Colin. "First though I want a drink," she looked meaningfully at Finn, "and hang out a while and until then, Logan promises to behave himself, right Huntzberger?" she finished, returning her gaze to Logan and removing his hand on her thigh to lay it onto the table, intertwining her fingers with his again though.

Colin and Finn gaped at her for a long moment.

Finn was the first to recover. "Excuse me, Love, but I think we haven't been introduced so far," he drawled with his thickest accent, his eyes glinting. "I'm Finn. And you are?"

Rory rolled her eyes. "Just go get me a drink, Finn."

"But of course, fair lady. May I know what the lady wishes though?" Finn immediately asked.

She contemplated that for a moment, before she shrugged. "Hmm, I feel adventurous today, so why don't you surprise me? But Finn," she added in a warning tone. "Don't make it too strong. I'm not out for a hangover tomorrow."

"Trust me, love," Finn winked at her before getting up and heading over to the bar.

"Famous last words," Logan muttered, watching him waving down Rick, then turned to look at Ace, eyebrow raised.

"What?" she asked, noticing the silent stare.

"Are you alright?" he asked, slightly concerned.

"Of course, never been better," she answered with a smile though.

"Hmm… so… you hadn't a fight with someone or something?" he continued his questions tentatively.

Her smile intensified. "No, all has been peaceful this fine day."

"Uhu… Say, you don't happen by any chance to be an alien imposing as my gir… gifted in many ways friend Ace, also known as Rory Gilmore?" he quickly saved himself, frowning a bit. What the hell was he about to say there for a moment? Well, he knew what had almost slipped out of his mouth, but seriously… what had he been thinking?

Sure, he and Rory had had undoubtedly a very good time together and if he had it his way, they would for a long time to come. But that still didn't made her – that. No way.

Fortunately, Rory didn't seem to have noticed his almost slip, as she laughed. "And of course if I am an Alien I'd be telling you that now." She shook her head. "But no, I am not. This is still me and me alone, on an uneventful, normal day." She raised an eyebrow. "But if it's such a problem for you that I'm here, I can as well go, you know."

"No!" Logan protested immediately. Perhaps a bit too fast, judging from the intense look he could feel from across the table. He was pretty sure Colin hadn't missed his almost slip. But first things first. He gave Rory a lopsided grin. "No problem at all. It's a delightful surprise. I'm just wondering. You've got to admit that this, coming to a bar on a Monday, drinking, hanging out, isn't quite your usual routine."

"I guess it is," Rory conceded, apparently tamed for the moment. "And I admit that yeah, if I had to get up tomorrow for my classes I probably wouldn't be here. But as I don't have to…"

"Why that? You don't have classes tomorrow?" Colin interrupted, frowning at her.

"What's this I hear about no classes tomorrow?" Finn asked, returning with his hands full with drinks. "Not that it matters anyway, but for future references I'd like to be informed." He carefully set the glasses down and slid one towards Rory. "Here it is, love, my very own creation for my special lady friend."

"And what exactly does this mean? What's in it?" Rory asked, suspiciously.

Finn just smiled expectantly at her.

She seemed to contemplate it for a moment, then shrugged and raised the glass to take a sip of the yellow drink. When she put it down again, she smiled. "It's good!!"

"Of course it's good," Finn answered, offended. "Anything alcoholic coming from me is good!" Slipping back into the booth, his eyes turned back to Rory. "Now, back to that absence of class tomorrow?"

"Oh please, as if you go to classes tomorrow, on the great day that worships Finn's most favorite brew," she replied, rolling her eyes.

The boys at the table grew still and exchanged a stunned glance. "Does she say what I think she says?" Finn asked, eyes wide.

"I think she does," Colin answered, nodding slowly.

"That this fair maiden knows the importance of the day to come?" Finn continued, breathless.

"It seems like it," Colin once again agreed.

"And that she knows how to respectfully honor this greatest of all days by _skipping_ classes?" Finn further inquired, eyes set on Rory with awe.

Again, Colin nodded, still baffled. "Apparently so, yes, that was implied."

Finn turned his eyes to Logan, who had watched the exchange amused so far, accusingly. "And you, my mate, failed to mention this extraordinary aspect of our love to me? Shame on you!"

Logan raised his hands. "Hey, this is as much news to me as to you," he defended himself.

"Hellooooo?" Rory intercepted any further inquisition by waving at them. "Still right here, sitting beside you?"

Finn finally turned his intense gaze to her and leaned forward. "My love, tell me, is it what I think it is?" he asked, breathless.

Chuckling, Rory rolled her eyes. "If you mean if I go to the St. Patrick's Day parade in New York tomorrow, then yeah, it is what you think it is." She shook her head. "But really, what's the big deal? It's not as if you don't know how I am with special days."

Before any of the boys could say anything in return, her cell phone rang. Her face lightening up, she reached for it, making a moment sign to the boys. "House of impending insanity and drunkenness, Lady Marmalade speaking. For questions about insane behavior, please press one. For questions about continued insanity, please press two. For questions about drunken embarrassments, please press three. For cures of hangovers, please use four."

Colin stared at Rory as if she had just sprouted a second head in front of him. Finn whereas stared at her as if she had just turned into a goddess. Logan merely chuckled. After all the time he had spent with his Ace, especially the personal time, he had gotten used to her sometimes strange way to answer the phone - usually, when her mother called.

"Ah, continued insanity it is. Well, what can I do for you? I think you will have no problem with _that_ point, my child," Ace continued, grinning.

Colin turned his incredulous stare to Logan, who just mouthed to him to wait.

And sure enough, Rory dropped the game just then. "Oh come on, Mom, you know it's true enough. So, what's up? And before you even ask, of course I've already prepared everything for the big day tomorrow."

"Her mother?" Colin whispered, unbelieving.

Logan nodded and frowned when his Ace's face fell all of a sudden.

"What? But Mom, how can you? It's St. Pattys! Your absolute favorite day of the year!" A moment of silence. "But can't Michel or Sookie..." her words trailed off, then she sighed. "No, Mom, it's okay. I understand. It's just... that's the first St. Pattys we won't spend together. And I really looked forward to see the parade. Rumor has it that they've got a new balloon and it's huge and all green of course and..." Again she stopped, then chuckled. "Well, of course I'm going to rub it in. That's your punishment for standing me up on this holy day and breaking tradition."

Her mother had cancelled on Ace? Hmm... Logan's eyes lit up.

"Paris? Mom, are you sure you have not sniffed a little too much of something? You remember last year, right?" She waited a beat, then nodded. "Right. Paris - craziest day in New York in the whole year - very bad combination." She listened for a moment, then sighed and shrugged. "Dunno. I'll probably just go to classes after all." Cringing, she held the phone away from her ear and waited a few moment, before she dared to hold it back against her ear. "Well, I don't suppose you want me to go to big bad New York alone when all the lunatics are let out of the closet, do you? Right."

At that, Logan frowned. No, his Ace definitely would not go alone to New York. That was indeed way too dangerous.

Rory spoke again. "No, not really. Lane can't, she's got a gig in some place you never have heard off over in Massachusetts. And there's really not anyone else. But don't worry, it's okay. I can watch it in the television and hey, perhaps, after your meeting, you can call and we'll watch it together." She listened then smiled. "Sure, no problem. Greet Luke for me. Yeah Bye."

The moment she closed her phone, Finn spoke up. "How could you, love!" he wanted to know, sounding and looking deeply hurt.

Rory raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"No one?! No one?! Who are we, no one?!" Finn exclaimed, sounding even more hurt, if that was possible.

"Uh Finn..." Rory started to say, shaking her head.

"Of course you come with us," Finn just interrupted her though. "There's no way we'll let you go to school tomorrow. But really, love, that you even dared to imply you have no one to go to the parade with!"

Logan shot Finn a look. It wasn't that he hadn't the same plan and ask his Ace along but... Ace was his g... well, his friend with benefits. It certainly wasn't Finn's place to ask Ace along - or anywhere for that matter. Especially not without first asking Logan about it. Not that he would have said no - he wanted her to come with them. In fact, he couldn't wait to see Lorelai Leigh Gilmore going to skip school to go to celebrate St. Patrick's Day. It promised to be a sight not to forget and one he could probably tease her with for months to come. But still... what if he had wanted to take someone else with him? Or what if he had planned to go wild in New York? Not that he had wanted to, but that wasn't the point.

Rory glanced at Logan and Colin, before she looked back at Finn. "Finn, that's nice, but... are you sure? Because you know, I know how you three like to party and taking me along... I don't know, I just think it could put a dent into your plans and I really don't won't to impose myself on you. And..."

"Love, don't be ridiculous. You won't impose at all. And I don't see how your presence could ever put a dent into our plans, right mates?" Finn though wouldn't hear any of her protests.

Remembering that he really wanted his Ace to come with them, Logan turned to her and nodded. "Finn's right, Ace. Of course you'll come with us." He smiled anticipatory. "There's no way I'll pass on this opportunity to see you slugging it for a day."

"Slugging? On St. Pattys? Are you crazy?" Rory asked, her other eyebrow raising as well.

"She truly get's it," Finn sighed, shaking his head. "So, you be ready at eight a.m., love."

"Eight?" Rory chuckled. "You sure about that? You do know that the sun's already up by then, right?"

"For the greatest of all days, even I can make exceptions," Finn said highly, then winked at her. "Beside, it's not as if I need to get up for it."

Rory stared at him for a moment, then looked at Colin. "He's going to make through the night? How will he survive tomorrow then?"

Colin shrugged. "Don't ask me. I didn't believe it the first time around either. But he's getting worse every year." He shook his head. "Perhaps you should think twice before you agree to come with us, Rory. Believe me, what you've seen of Finn is nothing compared to how he'll be tomorrow."

She glanced back at Finn and smiled. "No... no, I think I can take it. My mom schooled me excellently in the craziness that's St. Pattys. Besides - no one can beat Kirk on the dance marathon season. Or when he gets to be Jesus in Da Vinci's 'The Last Supper'." She turned to Logan. "But you better don't want to make through the night as well. Because there's no way this girl here won't get some sleep until tomorrow."

Logan smiled. "Ah, believe me Ace, that's not the plan. And if I happen to make the night through anyway, then it's for surely for entirely different reasons than with Finn," he reassured her, his voice dropping at his innuendo at the end.

But his Ace wasn't impressed. "In your dreams perhaps," she told him dryly.

He chose not to say anything - instead he smuggled his hand back under the table and put it lightly on her knee to then stroke with it upwards, slowly. He heard her breathing slightly change and smiled satisfied as he leaned into her, his hand slipping another bit higher, moving slightly inward. "Oh, I think the reality will be much better than my dreams, Ace," he whispered into her ear, lowly.

The tip of her tongue flickered out, licked her lips, and he could see her throat work as she swallowed. He moved his hand yet another inch closer to Nirvana and her breath caught while his body started to react strongly to her reactions as well. Not bothering about where they were and who was looking, hell, barely remembering it at all, he turned more towards her and moved his other hand to cup her cheek to turn her head towards him and already, he gave her a deep, longing kiss that did nothing to diminish his desire though. Quite the contrary actually.

God, would he never get enough of that girl?

"Seriously, guys, go get yourself a room."

Colin's slightly disgusted voice penetrated through the heated daze in Logan's brain and with this remembrance of where they were exactly, Logan reluctantly broke away from his Ace, not before taking a look into her eyes though. Eyes, that shone at him in the dark blue they'd turn when she was turned on, as he had learned. The anticipatory twitch his cock made in response to that was almost hurtful.

Shit. Colin was right. They needed to get out of there.

"Come on, Ace, finish your drink, then let's get out of here," he told her, so low only she could hear him.

She gazed at him for a moment longer, before she took a deep breath and nodded once. Logan turned back to sit straight, his hand still firmly on her thigh - he restrained himself though to move it any higher, knowing full well that if he did, the crowd here would get a show he definitely didn't want them to get. So instead, he merely let his thumb make slow circles while he downed his drink and tried to relax his body enough in order to get Rory somewhere private, preferable his or her place. Though how he was supposed to get her across campus without ravishing her on the way over was a mystery to him. Beside him, Rory finished her drink and set down the empty glass.

"Another one, love?" Finn asked, his eyes shining mischievously though.

Rory started to shake her head but before she could speak, Logan removed his hand from her thigh, with great reluctance, to grab her hand. "We're out of here," he said shortly as he slid out of the booth, Rory's hand firm in his, urging her to follow him. Not that she put up any resistance. "See you tomorrow," he added, as he snatched up his jacket and Rory's coat, and then pulled her after him towards the door, not bothering to look back at his friends and deciding to ignore their snickering. In front of the door he stopped to help Rory into her coat and quickly slipping into his own jacket before he reclaimed her hand into his and led her out of the bar.

The cool night that hit them helped Logan to relax a bit, but really, it was only a small relieve. Letting out a laugh, he shook his head and turned to his Ace, wrapping an arm around her shoulder to pull her closer to him. "Ever done it in a public place, Ace?" he asked her in a whisper.

She looked up at him, her wide eyes answer enough for him. "Logan!" she protested, outrageous.

"What? It's an experience no one should live without. Especially not a well rounded college girl like you," he argued, setting a fast path that would get them to their houses as fast as possible. He wasn't really suggesting to have public sex but God, he loved to tease her. And the idea really had something very enticing.

"Well, I think I can do without that experience. At least for now. It's way too cold to have sex anywhere else than in a heated place," she predictably countered. Though he was surprised to hear a maybe for the future out of her words. Surprised and very pleasantly pleased.

"I'll keep you warm, baby," he promised, grinning.

She rolled her eyes. "Please, you're too smart to use such cheesy lines, Huntzberger. More originality, please. And I thought we already had that 'baby' discussion."

He chuckled. "Well forgive me, but I fear current company has put out some of the grey cells up there. So you really have to blame yourself for any cheesiness that may slip out of my mouth."

"Excuse me, but who started to put his hands places it shouldn't be? At least not when in a bar with your friends sitting across from us," she objected, giving him a poignant glare.

"Is it my fault you're so irresistible?" Logan shot back and, despite his better judgment, lowered his head to claim her lips in a long, heated kiss.

Shit, how were they ever going to make it to one of their dorms?

"Okay, that's it. Another comment like that and I seriously have to rethink our plans for tonight. If I'd wanted an unoriginal, cheesy slimball I'd have picked myself up a freshman," she told him once he let go of her lips, lacking any heat though.

Still. The mere thought of her and a freshman slightly bristled Logan. "I promise, no more cheesy lines," he told her firmly and pulled her forward again. "May I learn where the lady wants to go? To the comfortable security of her own environment or the naughty confinement of the place I call mine?"

Ace laughed and leaned her head onto his shoulder. "See, that's much better. And my place. If Finn wants to pick us up at eight I need a head start for getting ready in time. That will take enough time as it is and I really don't want to get up even earlier in order for me to get back to my dorm tomorrow morning." She lifted her head again and frowned. "Oh yeah, do you want to first go by your place to pick up your things for tomorrow?"

What? And having to wait even longer before he could do with his Ace what he had in mind? He didn't think so. "No, that's okay. I'll just go change while you'll get ready," he answered and turned into direction of the Branford House. "But what do you mean? You'll have to get ready? You never take long to get ready."

She gave him a look then laughed. "Oh, the jokes you make," she chuckled, shaking her head.

Logan frowned but decided to let it drop. It wasn't important after all. "Is Paris home?" he instead asked.

"I guess so," she answered, nodding.

Making a face, Logan sighed. "Well, I guess a guy can't have everything. Just tell me Doyle's not there as well. Or I definitely want to come through the window again."

She grinned. "And who says I'll let you in, chicken?"

"If you think you can wound my manly honor by calling me chicken, know that this pour attempt of you is futile. We are talking about Paris and Doyle after all. No one in their right mind want to face them alone, let alone together without fearing to get scarred for the rest of their lives," Logan told her, groaning. "As it is, I'm still suffering from yesterday, when I brought you back and Doyle was there, in your living room, clad in nothing else than a red g-string with a tiger painted over little Doyle." He shuddered. "Believe me, I'm not ready to even risk to face another near naked Doyle." Shaking off the disgusting image, he gazed at her, raising an eyebrow. "And Ace, really, you should know by now that in the end, I'll bring you to let me in. We both know that."

One of her eyebrows rose to match his as she looked around. "Huh... I thought I just heard the stratosphere cringing when your ego hit it."

"Cute," he remarked dryly. "But why deny the truth, my fact loving ace reporter?"

She opened her mouth, no doubt to give another of her clever retorts, but Logan prevented it by shutting her up with another searing kiss, moving to press her against the door they had finally reached in the meantime. Her arms slid up to lock around his neck as her hands buried themselves into his hair. She pulled herself up along his body for them to get a better angle to deepen their kiss and their kiss was definitely not the only thing that heated up into flames in an instant. With a growl, he ripped his lips away from hers. "Keys," he demanded in a rough voice, not bothering to hide the desire in it. It wasn't as if she couldn't perfectly feel his arousal pressing against her center anyway.

Reclaiming his lips, he felt her pressing the key into his hand an agonizing long moment later. Leaving a trail of kisses down her neck, he blindly fondled with the key to find the lock. When he finally felt it slid into the lock he nearly groaned with relief - if he hadn't been too busy to ravish that tender spot she hat on the base of her neck, right over her pulse, with his mouth. The door gave away and they stumbled inside. Logan was tempted to simply forget about the door and get her to her room as fast as possible but the last time they had forgotten to relock the door Paris had stormed in at four thirty in the morning to give them an half an hour rant about that. Definitely not something he wanted to ever repeat again. Seriously, that girl could be scary as hell. So he hurried to lock the door again, his mouth never leaving contact with Rory's skin though. At last, the damn door was securely locked again and not loosing another precious moment, Logan simply lifted Rory up against the door and sure enough, her legs almost immediately closed around his middle.

Sending a feverish prayer up to thank for Paris and Doyle's absence in the living room, Logan pushed away from the door, closed his arms around Rory to press her as close against him as he could, her tongue deep in his throat and walked them over to her room whose door was thankfully open. As soon as they were in, he kicked the door shut with his foot.

Finally.

* * *

Naturally, Logan hadn't gotten as much sleep as he would have needed to be fully fit - especially after the week he had had. But he had had gotten in a few hours after all, especially once Rory had left the bed to get ready, under much protest from Logan. Really, why the hell had she needed to get up at six thirty when they hadn't to leave before eight? None the less, she had and had vanished into her bathroom and that was the last he had seen of her until he had gotten up an hour later to go back to his own dorm for a quick shower and dress into fresh clothes. Five minutes before eight, Finn had prowled in with a sleepy and grungy Colin in tow, fit as ever and clad in green pants that were a bit too tight for Logan's liking, a green shirt, a green vest and - of course - a green cap crowning his black hair. A shamrock, naturally green as well, decorated his left cheek and his fingernails shone in a sparkling green and even the green boots he wore sparkled with green emeralds.

Logan didn't blink once. After all, this wasn't the first St. Patrick's Day he spent with the crazy Australian.

"Hop, hop, hop, let's not loose precious time in this boring place," Finn impatiently urged him on.

Knowing better than to even try to respond or argue, Logan simply grabbed his jacket and his wallet and then turned back to his friends, ready to hit the road.

Frowning deeply, Finn glared at his dark green trousers, the even darker pullover and the black leather jacket and shook his head disapprovingly. "Didn't I tell you last year to better dress properly this year around? You can't come like this!"

"Finn, we have this discussion every year. It's dark but it's still green and that's the only green I let myself talk into wearing. Nor will I paint any parts of my body and I certainly will not wear anything that glimmers in any green colors," Logan told him shortly, it being way too early to get into a discussion with Finn. Then he pointed at Colin who, like him, had chosen to wear dark green pants and pullover as well. "Neither is Colin and you'll just have to live with it. Now let's go, we still have to pick up Ace after all before we hit the road."

Finn made a face but did turn to leave. He didn't stop to mutter things under his breath the whole way over to Rory's dorm though, not that Logan or Colin did pay him any attention. Like said, it wasn't their first St. Patrick's Day together. By the time they'd arrive in New York, Finn would have forgotten about their 'inappropriate' dressing.

Arriving in front of Rory's dorm, Logan knocked against the door and then debated if he should risk to enter or not. With Finn dressed like he was he was rather inclining to go in but there still was the risk of encountering Paris and possibly Doyle. Before he could come to a decision though, the door opened wide opened.

Logan blinked. "_Ace?_"

No way could the girl in front of them be his Ace, he thought as he took in the knee high green boots, the green stockings, the green and really short mini, the fluttery green top and the green jumper over it. Her hands were clad in long green gloves that reached up to her elbows, with a golden bracelets with tiny shamrocks hanging from them on each of her wrists. There was sitting a giant green, shamrock formed hat on her head and an also shamrock formed bag was hanging from one of her shoulders. Her skin was bathed in a golden tone with tiny, glittery shamrocks sprinkled over it and a shamrock decorated both of her cheeks, accenting the green lipstick and the green eye shadow she wore. Golden shamrocks dangled from her ears and another one hang from a chain around her neck. Hell, even her hair was green and he was pretty sure that it wasn't a wig.

While he still stared open mouthed at the girl in front of him, Finn dropped to his knees beside him and bowed deeply. "The green fairy!!!!" he exclaimed joyously, admire shining all over his face.

The girl laughed and shook her head. "You don't look bad yourself, Finn. Too bad you're so tall, otherwise you'd just be the perfect leprechaun. Now get up, we need to get a go. I don't want to get stuck in traffic and miss the parade."

Her voice was that of his Ace. But it just couldn't be. He knew his Ace was big on tradition but - this? No way. And yet, the blue eyes that looked at him were definitely those of his Ace. And the frown that appeared on her golden forefront was all too familiar as well.

"Why are you not dressed already? You don't want to change in the car, do you?" she wanted to know.

Triumphantly, Finn jumped up. "Ha! See! I told you you weren't dressed appropriately!"

Ace, because he could no longer deny that the green girl in front of him was indeed his Ace, looked from him and Colin to Finn, then back again, her frown deepening. "They want to go like that? We can't go with them like that! They're not green enough by far!"

"Don't look at me, love," Finn said, holding up his hands. "I tried to get them to admit to this day and pay their respect for years but obviously, I've been talking to deaf ears."

Rory shook her head. "Well, there's not much we can do about it now, but wait just a second, I'll go get my St. Pattys bag. I'm sure there are some things in it that will save their face at least a bit."

Alarmed, Logan shook his head. "Uh Ace..." But she was already gone in a green whirl. He took one look at Finn's gloating face and then looked at Colin, who had paled a bit.

"Uh oh..." Colin whispered, his eyes wide.

Logan could only agree. After all, he knew only too well just how well his Ace managed to get her will. Something told him that even his biggest aversion against green would not save him from the contents in her 'St. Pattys bag'.

He shuddered.

Shit.

* * *

"It won't go off!" Logan complained through the open bathroom door, rubbing furiously at his cheek.

It was two a.m. and he was dead tired on his feet and he was fairly sure that his Ace was no better. But he refused to fall into bed before he didn't get rid of the drawings on his cheeks. Colin had gone off with some girl in the middle of the evening and Finn was still partying with the hard cores when he and Rory had made their exit of the last bar they had ended in. And it had been a long day, indeed. A good day, but a long day. Especially as Logan had found himself not being in the mood to drink himself into a stupor like he usually did on St. Patrick's Day. Somehow though he had been content to only drink enough to give him a pleasurable buzz this time. And he was pretty sure that that was mostly because of Rory. Partly because drunk like he usually got on this day, he wouldn't be able to properly protect her from the sickos lining New York's streets, especially on this one special day. But also because he wanted to enjoy the day with her, all of it, and that also required of him to not get too drunk. So far, he hadn't regretted this decision. It had been a blast. But now, tired and eager to simply snuggle under the sheets of the bed in the luxury suite in the Plaza that was always reserved for him for his New York trips with Rory, he was getting frustrated with the damn paint that wouldn't get off his cheeks.

Snickering, Rory appeared in the door, still in all of her green glory, and she shook her green-golden head. "Of course it will go off, silly one. But mere water won't do it. Here, try it with this," she said, sounding way too amused for Logan's liking.

Passing her a singular glare, he snatched the bottle, made a face at seeing the label on it, but opened it anyway. He really wanted to get rid of the shamrocks Rory had painted onto his cheeks on the way over to New York. He still had no idea how it had come to that, one minute he had refused to let Rory 'tidy' him up for the parade and the next, she was carefully painting shamrocks onto his cheeks. Actually, he was ready to believe that there really had been some magic powder in the brown bag dangling from her left wrist. There was no other explanation how she had talked him into wearing that shamrock formed barrette she had produces out of that damn bag of hers. Or to walk around New York with a golden pot and a wooden knobby stick. Nope, no way. And to top it all, Colin had ended up looking as ridiculous as Logan.

Right, there had to be some magic involved. It was the only explanation.

He continued to rub at his cheek and noted with some relief that indeed, the green color was slowly coming off. Very slowly though.

Smiling, Rory came over to him. "Here, let me," she said and hopped onto the counter, facing him.

Sighing, Logan handed her the cloth and moved to stand between her legs. She turned to the sink beside her, held the cloth under water, then poured some of the cleansing onto it before she gently started to dab at his cheeks.

"I don't know what's your problem. You and Colin would have stood out they way you've been and it would only have been half of the fun," she said, giving him a curious look.

Logan shrugged. "I just don't like to have things painted onto my cheeks. Any part of my body for that matter."

"Even on Halloween? Don't tell me you've never been costumed as something that needed facial make-up," she asked while she continued to carefully remove the painture from his cheek.

"That's not the same," Logan pointed out.

She shrugged. "This is St. Pattys. It's as good an excuse as Halloween."

"If you've noticed, there were a lot of people in the streets and the bars that looked fairly normal," Logan reminded her.

Making a face, she shook her head. "Boring."

"Normal," he countered, a smile tugging at his lips.

"But long not as funny," she fired back.

"And getting not as many strange looks as you and Finn had gotten," Logan argued and frowned. "Especially you." Rory really had drawn many eyes onto her though most of them had been leery stares from the entire men population of New York. Well, that was perhaps a slight exaggeration, but really, he had lost count of the glares he had to sent out to men looking inappropriately at his gir... his Ace in the very first twenty minutes of being out on the streets.

"Pah, they were just envious," Rory shrugged them off.

He shook his head. "Nope. They were eyeing you warily and contemplating if they shouldn't perhaps call for orderlies to get you back off the streets."

"Well perhaps," she finally conceded, but then grinned. "But that's just the fun of it. Come on, you've got to admit that the way that couple from Alabama eyed Finn, unsure if he was just crazy or indeed Charles Manson in disguise."

"I have nothing to do," he corrected her, but then couldn't help the chuckle that escaped his lips. "But okay, that was funny."

"Exactly. Actually, I dare say that you and Colin had a lot of fun - perhaps even more than other years and that was just because you went along a bit more with the spirit of this truly great day," she said and let her hand sink down. "There, it's gone. You're all green free now."

He quickly glanced into the mirror and indeed, his cheeks were clean once again. Thank God! He looked back at his Ace, who seemed to wait for a response of him. Smiling, he sighed, thinking back at the street party they had participated in the afternoon, after being dragged away by a group of Irish NYU students, having been singled out by them for Finn and Rory's appearance. As far as street parties went, it sure had been the best he had ever been at. "Okay, okay, it wasn't so bad," he finally admitted and her eyes lit up with content.

"See, was that so hard?" she asked and used her legs to push him closer to her, close enough for her to put her arms around his neck and dragging down his head for a quick, chaste but definitely dirty kiss.

Laughing, Logan reached up and removed her arms from around his neck. "Uh-uh, little Missy, St. Pattys over now. You want something from me, you first get rid of all the green and glimmer."

Her lower lip stuck out and a perfect pout appeared on her face. "But that will take ages!"

"Well, you should have thought of that before you went to all this - effort," he reminded her, eyeing her green fairy glory.

One of her eyebrows rose. "How was I supposed to know that the insatiable Logan Huntzberger would refuse to have sex with me ever, even if there may be a lot of green on me?"

Hmm, he guessed she had a point there. He shrugged. "Anyway, now you know. So you better remember this for next year."

Her other eyebrow rose as well as she laughed dryly. "Boy, you must really think much of yourself when you honestly believe that I'd ever dare the gods and renounce to the traditional, not to mention appropriate ways that are the greatness of one St. Patrick's Day."

He eyed her for a moment before he decided that apparently, he really had said something stupid. Rolling his eyes, he gave her a wary look. "I see. Does that mean that on July 4th, you're going to be all red-white-blue with a union flag painted onto your cheeks?"

"Let's just say that Reese Witherspoon in the congress is nothing against me on the great day of patriotism," she answered with a secret smile. "Though I have passed on the painted cheeks so far."

"Good to know," he said dryly and made a mental note to make sure he was far away from his Ace on that day. Though it could be entertaining to watch her kick back then, he mused with an afterthought.

Rory hopped down from the counter and moved over to the big tub, turning on the water. Once she was content with the temperature of the water, she pulled the flattery top over her head to reveal more golden skin and a green bra. Logan felt his throat go dry.

Damn. Who'd have thought that green on gold would look so damn sexy?

As if sensing his thoughts she looked back at him over her shoulder, smiling a smile he knew only too well after nearly a month of sleeping with her. Another part of him recognized that smile only too well as well and eagerly rose in anticipation.

Her smile intensified. "Want to give me a hand in getting me clean?" she asked, innocently.

Hell yeah.

* * *

"Where are you going?" Logan mumbled, finally assessing what had woken him up. The too long absence of Rory from bed. Upon opening an eye, he saw her, dressing herself into a pair of jeans and a long-sleeved sweater.

She turned and smiled apologetically at him. "Sorry, didn't want to wake you."

Frowning, Logan glanced at the clock on the night table and then quickly looked back at Rory who proceeded to pin up her hair into a loose bun. "It's barely eight. Where do you suppose to go to that early?"

Rolling her eyes, she came over to him and leaned down, giving him a quick kiss. "My first class starts at ten past ten. If I hurry, there's just enough time for me to catch the next train back to New Haven."

His eyes opened further and he pushed himself up. "What? Come on, Ace, just forget about it," he protested, unbelieving. What was wrong with that girl?

But she shook her head. "One day of skipping is more than enough. Besides, Professor Juniak's classes are so interesting and important that I really can't afford to miss even one. The final in his class is twenty percent of the whole grade."

"Ace, you're one of the best students in your year. Trust me, you can afford to miss a whole of a lot more classes than just the ones of this morning," Logan told her, his frown deepening.

"Did it ever occur to you that perhaps I'm so good _because_ I attend all my classes?" she asked, moving through the room to pick up her things.

"Nah, you're that smart," Logan dismissed her objection with an impatient shake of his head. "Now be reasonable and come back to bed, Ace."

Laughing, she shook her head again. "Yeah right - then I'll never catch the train. Have you seen my jumper? I can't find it."

"No," he answered shortly and sat up, glaring over at Rory. "And what's this with taking the train? You can't take the train. It's bend to be full of idiots, nursing their hangover. That's no place for a girl like you."

"Don't be ridiculous, Logan. I'll be perfectly fine. It's not the first time I take a train, you know? Damn it, where is that jumper?" she asked annoyed, looking around.

His frown deepened and he ran a hand through his hair. Contrary to his Ace, he very much doubted her safety on the train, early, the morning after St. Patrick's Day. No, he really didn't like that idea. But clearly, she wouldn't be talked out of getting back to Yale in time for her class. He knew that look well enough after knowing her all these months. Fuck.

"Okay, just give me half an hour," he muttered, making a face. It really was a sin to get up that early after a day like they had had yesterday.

"In half an hour the train is gone," Rory protested though and shook her head. "Really Logan, I'll be fine. If you find my jumper, can you bring it back to me, please?"

"Forget about the train. We'll take the limo," Logan told her shortly, flipping back the covers.

Rolling her eyes, she came over and pushed Logan back onto the mattress. "Okay Logan, this really gets ridiculous now. You don't want to get up yet and that is perfectly all right. Besides, I definitely won't rob you and Finn and Colin of your transportation just because I want to get back to Yale earlier than you guys. Plus, there's a jam on pretty much every highway out of New York and I'd never make it in time by car. And this way, I can get the reading done that we had assigned for today, in perfectly peace. Now that this is settled, go back to sleep," she finished, leaned down and gave him a short, but deep kiss.

And already, she had straightened up and with a last smile back over her shoulder, she picked up her bag and breezed out of the door.

Frustrated, Logan let himself fall back onto the cushion.

This was definitely not how he had imagined this morning.

* * *

"Where's Rory?" Colin asked when Logan joined him and a scowling Finn much later that day.

Logan shook his head. "She left early this morning. Wanted to catch her first class at ten," he answered, shortly.

Colin frowned. "What is wrong with that girl?"

Logan just shrugged. "Come on, let's go," he said and turned to leave the lobby of the Plaza.

Despite his tiredness, he had been unable to go back to sleep and frustrating two hours later, he had gotten up. A quick call to his Ace had assured him that she had survived the train trip, not that that improved his mood much. He really had had other plans for the morning. He had hoped they could stay in the city for the day, go a bit shopping, live the city life. Okay, sure, he knew his Ace and should have known that it was too much expected of her to skip two days in a row. Still... a guy could hope, couldn't he? And instead, he had showered alone, had breakfast and had gone out to get a little shopping done, all alone. It hadn't been much fun, really not. Around lunchtime, he had called Colin to see what his friends were doing and they had settled to meet at three pm for the ride back with Colin in charge of getting Finn there as well. The fact that Logan had been actually half an hour early should say enough about how boring the last few hours had been. At least he had found a few good new books that he had bought, along with two for his Ace. And a few more tracks from the 'must have'-list Ace had started in the poker night and weekly updated it by now by at least fifteen new tracks.

"Wait, how did she get back?"

Colin's question brought Logan back to the here and now. He looked across the limo to him. "Took the train," he answered with a sigh.

Again, Colin frowned. "The train? Is she crazy? Are you crazy? That can't possibly be safe for her!"

Logan glared at him. As if he didn't know that! "Trust me, I tried to change her mind, but she wouldn't hear any of it." He shook his head. "She got back okay though, I checked with her."

Colin shook his head. "I'd say that's pure luck. Man, you've really got yourself a strange girl there."

"Don't I know it," Logan muttered.

"Oh, for Christ's sake, will you two stop it? You know, I think it probably hadn't been the first time our girl took the train," Finn groaned, exasperated, his eyes still closed while he was slouched deeply into the soft leather seats. "She's a big girl. And I think we all know by now how studious she is, so, however incomprehensible that may be for us, we should be used to it by now."

Logan glared over at Finn. Sure, the Australian was right and Ace had said something similar herself this morning but still, Finn wasn't her b... Biting his lip, Logan put a firm stop to this trail of thoughts and turned his glare outside, watching the streets of New York fly by.

"Well, forgive us if we worry about the safety of our friend," Colin though told Finn, miffed.

Sighing, Finn opened an eye to look over at Colin. "Nothing's wrong with that but you clearly overdo it. Now down, boy, if I have to be up at this ungodly hour because you just wouldn't let me sleep I at least refuse to listen to your boring conversations." His other eye opened and he sat up an inch. "Instead, let's talk about something way more exciting. Like my birthday!"

Ah... suppressing a smirk, Logan glanced at Colin. "Your birthday? What is it with it?" he asked innocently.

"Yeah, what? It's still a while to it, isn't it?" Colin added in a matching innocently way.

But Finn shook his head. "You do not fool me, mates. Each year you try to make me believe you've forgotten it and it never worked. So about my party - while I highly appreciate you planning a surprise party for me..."

Logan raised an eyebrow. "Who said we did that? We've given that one up years ago," he said, honestly actually. They had tried that a few times but in the end, Finn had always ended up organizing it.

Finn ignored him and simply continued. "... it's not necessary. I've already got it planned. And I've finally figured out this year's theme."

Colin groaned. "Oh no... not another themed party!? Haven't you learned anything from the SeaWorld party?"

Logan cringed in remembrance. Oh yeah, that one. He had tried to forget this one.

Finn glared at Colin but ignored his comment otherwise as well. "As I was saying before I got rudely interrupted, I figured out the theme and it's marvelous. That will get to be the best party ever as much as my name is Phineas Theverbough."

"You say that always," Logan pointed out and earned himself a glare as well.

"And it always is true," Finn pointed back, daring his friends to protest. When neither of them said anything, he nodded. "Now, this party's theme will be..." he made a dramatic pause, "... Quentin Tarantino, to honor the greatest of all living directors!"

Logan and Colin exchanged a look, then slowly started to grin. That idea really wasn't that bad.

"Every person lucky enough to get invited will have to wear a costume of a character out of the many and great movies of the Screen God. Only character's that's taken will be John Travolta from Pulp Fiction, which will be impersonated by yours truly," Finn elaborated, giving the hint of a bow. "The decoration is ordered, I've got the band and the caterer, all that is left to do is getting the word around. And being the wonderful best friends a mate can have, you of course will help me do that."

"And if we don't I guess we're not invited to the best party of the year, huh?" Colin asked pragmatically.

"My God he got it!" Finn exclaimed, his eyes gleaming wickedly.

Logan smirked. As if Finn's party would ever be complete without his best friends. Not that getting the word around would be hard - or some hard chore.

"Okay, and if you lack ideas or time to realize your costume idea, I've organized for a fitting tomorrow night, which I suggest will be gratefully used as I know how certain people just suck at getting good and original costumes," Finn said, giving Colin a very obvious look.

"Hey!" Colin protested. "I have perfect taste in costumes."

Finn and Logan both snorted.

Quickly going over the Tarantino movies in his mind, Logan stopped at Kill Bill Volume 2 and he started to grin. Perfect. And the best of all, he wouldn't need much for the costume, just to find a fitting robe somewhere, but that shouldn't be much of a problem. And he'd have his simple but effective costume. Beside, he doubted anyone else would dare to show up at the party as he planned to go.

"What about you, you coming?" Finn asked and it took Logan a moment to realize that his friend was talking to him.

He raised an eyebrow. "You aren't hinting that I lack in originality or style when choosing costumes for various events, are you?" he wanted to know, his eyes narrowing.

Finn held up his hands. "Never. We all know that you come just second to me and I, as is widely known, am the unchallenged king of costumes."

Satisfied, Logan nodded. "Good. But no, I'm not coming. I have my costume already, well, almost, which is good, because I couldn't come tomorrow anyway."

"No?" Colin asked, giving him a questioning look.

"No," Logan said, shaking his head. "Ace and me are going to a play tomorrow evening, having dinner beforehand."

"A play?" Colin repeated, surprised.

"Hmm, some musical, forgot the name," Logan answered absentmindedly, remembering that he still had to talk to the janitor for the little surprise he had planned for his Ace. Already having dealt with the janitor, he was pretty sure that the copy for the key he was going to ask for would not be cheap. But God, his Ace was going to love this one, he thought, smiling...

"A musical? As in people moving around the stage in ridiculous clothes, with ridiculous steps, singing loudly and mostly falsely songs that are far from being good but very close to being incredible kitsch?" Finn asked, one of his eyebrows shooting up.

Frowning, Logan glanced at him. "It's a musical. Knowing your passion for them I expect you to know what a musical is."

"Oh, _I _love them," Finn nodded. "But _you_ hate them, as you've stated more than once. I think approximately at least six times per year since first grade if I remember correctly. You've got to admit that to hear now that you want to go see a musical on your own free will is somewhat of surprising news."

"I'd say it's rather eight times," Colin nodded and chuckled. "But Finn's right. Boy, Rory sure has already wrapped you tightly around her pinky finger."

Clenching his jaw, Logan glared at them. "For your information, she's got to write a critique of the play for the paper and I asked to come along because when we made plans for this week it seemed to be the only opportunity for me to see her outside school. If that means I have to suffer through two and a half hours of absolute boredom, then so be it. She'll more than make up for it afterwards, believe me," he told them tersely. At least he hoped for it. Not that his plans with Ace for after the play were any of his friends' business.

Finn laughed dirtily. "I bet." He shook his head. "I'm not sure what's more funny: that you, Logan Huntzberger, Casanova, are so smitten with our love or that you have no idea that you're such a goner for her."

"I'm not..." Logan started to protest, anger beginning to boil in the bottom of his stomach.

"'course you are," Finn interrupted him and his eyes lit up. "Hey, are you and Reporter Girl going to wear matching costumes for the party? Alba and Rourke from Sin City perhaps? Or Uma and her unfortunate bridegroom?"

The anger boiled over and raced through his veins. "What?"

"Just admit it, mate, you and Reporter Girl are going to have your own fittings tomorrow," Finn nodded with laughing eyes.

Taking a deep breath, Logan clenched his hands into tight fists. This was going too far. Way too far. "No, I've already said what we're going to do tomorrow. And who says I'm going to take Ace to your party, huh? I don't remember ever mentioning something alike."

"Oh come on, Logan. Of course you're taking Rory. Who else?" Colin said, rolling his eyes.

Logan's glare moved from one of his friends to the other as even more muscles tensed. "For your information, I'm not. Ace and I are dating, yeah, but _casually_, remember? How many fucking times do I have to tell you idiots that? Just because we spend much time together doesn't mean that she's automatically the girl that accompanies me to parties, events or simply for a night out. Got that finally?" He rounded on Finn. "Actually, next time you ask her along with us like you did Monday, you may want to perhaps first check with me - what if I had already asked another girl along, huh? What if I had had other plans for St. Patrick's than to have Ace tag along and having to keep an eye on her all the time?"

The laughter gone from his eyes, Finn frowned. "What the hell's your problem?"

"My problem is that you two idiots are constantly seeing things that aren't there. And that you don't stop to push me and Ace together, forcing me into something I've told you many times before that I don't want it. That I'm fucking not ready for this!" Logan hissed. "Okay, so Ace and I are dating. And yeah, we meet often, but she's not the only girl, damn it! And I want you two to stop indicating that she is, that she's more than she is!"

Slowly, Finn sat up, eyes never leaving Logan, a deep frown between his eyes. "Now wait a minute there, Logan. We're perfectly aware of your stupid arrangement with our girl, but we also see that you don't spend just much time with her - you spend _all _your free time with her. And when you're not with her, you're mostly planning for the next time you see her." He narrowed his eyes and Logan could tell that he wasn't the only one anymore who was angry. "And as for asking her along for any trips: Let me remind you that Reporter Girl is not just _your_ girl - which she is - but she also happens to be _our_ friend, a good one. So I certainly won't ask you if you're okay with me asking a friend along. Especially when she, like on Monday, got her plans cancelled on her and we were planning to go where she wanted to go anyway."

"Okay, but you better don't expect me to simply change my plans because you do what you want," Logan huffed, beyond angry, but desperately trying to keep the anger in.

For a long moment, Finn stared at him, before he laid his head to the side, studying Logan closely. "Mate, you're not really suggesting here that you have a say in who's my friend and who isn't, are you?" he asked, very quietly.

Initially, Logan wanted to tell him that he had seen Ace first and her involvement with their little group was solely his business and his alone. But in the last second, he realized what he was about to say and stopped himself just in time. Instead, he forced himself to look away, to unclench his hands, to take a deep, calming breath. What the hell was wrong with him? Why did he get so damn riled up, whenever Rory came up between him and his friends? His best friends, as he reminded himself harshly. He couldn't let her come between them. As much as he loved spending time with her, he couldn't let her have that an influence on his life. She was just a girl. A great girl. A good friend. And God, she was beautiful. But... just a girl.

"No," he said shortly, refusing to look back at his friend. "No. But you guys need to stop this. Assuming things that are not there and not going to happen." He looked back at them then, boring his eyes into theirs. "Ace. Is. Not. My. Girlfriend," he spelled it out, emphasizing each of his words. "We spend quality time together, have great sex and good talks, and yes, she _is_ different than your average girl. But we're not together. We're not exclusively. So stop trying to make us be that." Shit, why did he feel like he had just betrayed his Ace big time? He bit his lips. "And considering _her_ feelings, like you seem so keen to do lately, you perhaps want to check with me if I haven't already asked another girl out before you invite her as well."

Finn's eyes were nothing else than slits anymore. "So basically you are saying that I can't invite her to say, my own birthday party?"

Taking another deep breath, Logan shrugged. "Do whatever you want. But she won't be there as my date," he told Finn.

"And who else are you going to ask to the party as your date?"

Caught off guard by this question, Logan stared at Colin. "What?"

"The party. Who'll be your date if not Rory?" Colin repeated.

Again, Logan shrugged. "How the hell should I know that? It's still days until then. You know I'm more spur of the moment. It's not as if there is any lack of girls just waiting for me to ask them out."

"Oh yeah, the _line_," Colin drawled and nodded. "And I know that you're spur of the moment. Yet, you have already settled plans with Rory for tomorrow at least a week ago, haven't you? And that's not the first time. If I remember correctly, there are cards for a Michael Bublé concert in your night drawer for sometime in June, aren't there?" His eyes bored themselves into Logan's, hard. "Or let's make this even simpler: When was the last time you went out with someone else than Rory?" he asked blatantly. "'Cause I know that it hasn't been days, but weeks, if not months already. And if you haven't found the ability to be in two places at the same time, then you haven't slept with another girl than Rory for as long." He shook he head and snorted. "So why don't you stop to kid yourself and finally accept that you may have made a no strings deal with Rory, but each of you has yet to go out with someone else. And while that is not too surprising with Rory, it sure as hell is new with you. If you do it consciously or not, you are already exclusive with a girl, Logan. With Rory. And you may refuse to call her your girlfriend - no, let me rephrase this: You're too chicken to refer to her as your girlfriend, but Logan, sorry to break you this, but she _is_ your girlfriend already."

"You're crazy," Logan told him, flatly.

Colin shrugged. "And you're stupid. Just think about it, Logan. You don't even look at other girls anymore and when you do, I can practically see how you compare them to Rory in your mind. You can't stop thinking about her and that got only worse since you two are doing the horizontal boogie as well. You continue to cancel plans on us, on the others, just so you can spend more time with her. Hell, you cut a ski trip short just to go back to her early, spending a week alone with her and when we see you after that week, you wear the most stupid grin I've ever seen on your face. But you know what? It was also the most happiest I've ever seen you. Yesterday, on _St. Patrick's Day_, you hardly drank anything and don't tell me that this hadn't to do mostly with the fact that you wanted to keep an eye on Rory and properly glare away any guy who looked a bit too long at her. Hell, you're ready to get into a fight with _us_, whenever you think we're coming a bit too close to her, just like right now. And on top of all that, I've never seen you as protective as you are with her, not even with Honor." He stopped, giving Logan a long, poignant look. "And now dare to say again that she means nothing more to you than any other random girl. Tell me that before you got into one of your childish and stubborn fits, you hadn't even thought of asking a different girl than Rory to Finn's party. Or asking another girl out at all. Tell us again that she is _not_ your girl."

Logan opened his mouth to give a heated answer, then thought better of it. It wasn't as if they were going to listen when they hadn't listened the first two hundred and sixty-four times. And they were wrong. Really, they were. So instead, he just shook his head and turned away from them to stare out the window, making it clear that this conversation was over. Ace was different, he had come to accept that. Well, he had been forced to accept it because after their first night together at the latest there was no way anymore to ignore that fact. And he was attracted to her, more than he ever had been for another girl. But that was because she was so different. Everything they had listed was because she was different and therefore his behavior towards her was different. And it was also the reason why he had been so - obsessed with her over the last few weeks, because different also meant new and Logan thrived for new things and experiences. So what if he hadn't dated other girls lately? That didn't automatically make Ace his girlfriend. Far from it. There were no strings. They were having fun, that was what they were doing. It were the constant innuendos from Finn and Colin that marred that fun. And when he wanted to go out with some other girl, he'd do that and it would be no problem whatsoever with his Ace. Because _she_ had suggested the casual dating after all, hadn't she? And okay, perhaps he had planned to go to the party with his Ace... but he could as well go with someone else. He wasn't feeling even the slightest disappointment that Finn had gone and ruined that enjoyment for him. No, really not. And he really needed to make the point clear to his boneheaded friends - even if that meant that the party was probably going to be a lot less funny than it could have been if he and Ace had gone together.

Sighing, he closed his eyes and leaned his head against the cool glass of the window. An image of his Ace in her St. Patrick's Day outfit came up almost immediately, whispering to him of the possibilities of her costuming herself for Finn's party. He'd have loved to see which character she'd have chosen to impersonate. Oh yeah, so many enticing possibilities. But he couldn't ask her to go with him, not now, not anymore.

Damn it all to hell. And damn Finn, for starting this. And Colin, for always pushing as well.

And damn that stupid 'no strings' agreement!

At that last thought, Logan's eyes flew open again, his heart beating fast.

Fuck.

* * *

"Oh thank God," Logan muttered as the curtain _finally_ fell for hopefully the last time.

That had to be one of the worst plays he ever had the displeasure of seeing. So okay, it had been an amateur group, college students - but really, what had they been thinking to go public with such a catastrophe?

"You know what's the sad thing?" Ace asked with a sigh as she put her pen and notebook away. "That wasn't even the worst thing I've ever seen." She shook her head. "Yale is great, really, the best university in the States and one of the best worldwide. One could think that such an Ivy League college should be able to stage plays that are at least an ounce of anything close to acceptable. I mean, it doesn't have to be Broadway or Albert Hall, but this?"

"What I don't understand is how it comes that so many alumni actually bother to come back just to see that crap. I mean, loyalty is good and nice, but come on..." Logan agreed, shaking his head in bewilderment.

"I asked Grandma once, but all she said is that it's her duty - and that not all the plays are so bad," Ace answered and stood up.

Logan followed and held out her coat for her to slip in. "Hard to believe after this," he commented dryly.

Ace smiled a thanks at him and shrugged. "I dunno, I did hear from some others that their last Shakespeare play, Henry V, was actually really good. I didn't go, too expensive when I have to pay to come see it and Doyle didn't assign me that one." Her eyes narrowed. "But you know, so far almost every play Doyle sent me to was, in one word, an almost unbearable waste of time and simply horrible. And I think that's no coincidence. I believe that Doyle has a snitch in the theater group and whenever that snitch tells him that a new play comes out that promises to be a complete disaster, he assigns the critique to me."

Logan laughed, steering her towards the exit. "Interesting theory. It would fit Doyle's character, but then it would also mean that he actually is sneaky enough to have a snitch and then to be clever enough to send you to properly scythe it. I'm not sure how comfortable I am with _that_ concept."

"True, but let's not forget that this is the same guy crazy enough to hook it up with Paris. And knowing Paris as well as I do, I know she really, really, really is into brain and a certain viciousness," Ace reminded him. "Considering how crazy she is for him... yeah well, you get the picture."

Logan shuddered. "Yeah, got it. And thanks for that, by the way."

"My pleasure," she answered innocently, then sighed. "It's not that it's not fun to be... well..."

"The bitch that destroys these young and hopeful actors' dreams by mercilessly giving an honest and very impressive critique?" Logan helped her out with a smirk, holding open the door for her. As soon as they were outside, he put his arm around her waist and pulled her into his side as they started to walk back towards their houses.

"Yeah. But I'd like to mention that anyone coming into that business should know by now that the business is hard and if they can't even bear the critique of a college reporter, then they are clearly in the wrong business," Ace remarked, making a face.

"No protest," Logan nodded.

"But just for once, I'd like to have to write a review for a play that is actually good. Or at least halfway there. It's tiring that every few months, when I get to go to the theatre, even if it's just the college theatre, it's crap that stinks so awfully to Heaven." Ace made a face. "But Doyle seems adamant to give me the crappy shows and he won't listen when I try to talk to him about it. I don't know how to get out of this. He's the editor after all, and even if he's sleeping with my roommate, I can't just ignore his assignments. He could throw me out of the staff for that."

"He's not that much of an idiot. Or has the balls for it," Logan reassured her and frowned, thinking about her problem. "Hmm... why don't you turn it around? As long as you write those biting critiques, Doyle will give them to you. So don't. Do the contrary. Shower this play with praises, go on and on about how well they had sung, how good the scenery was, what wonderful costumes they wore and how original the plot was." He grinned evilly. "I bet Doyle will never again send you out to make a critique."

"Logan, I can't lie!" Ace protested though, turning wide, but laughing eyes at him.

"Ace..." Logan told her patiently. "You're in the news business. Believe me, they're known to lie."

"Not the Times," she contradicted him.

"Oh yeah, even the great Times," Logan though corrected her. "In a clever, even marvelous way, but yeah, even they've lied here and there, willingly."

"Name one incident where they lied," she challenged him but when he immediately opened his mouth to answer, she held up a hand. "Deliberately and not when have being misguided or misinformed."

He raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "Let's see, where to start? The war in Iraq? The details of Hussein's capture? The progress of the Mars mission? The great doings of our late senator?"

"What are you talking about? The Times in no way..."

Logan chuckled and shook his head. "Ace, really, if you want to be the next Christiane Amapour you've got to stop being so naive. Yeah, I admit that the Times is one of the most accurate papers worldwide but if you really think that not even they are influenced by the White House, sanctioned sometimes even, then you must have been walking around with pink colored glasses."

At first, she opened her mouth, obviously to protest, but then she frowned, taking a closer look at Logan as id she had seen something in him he wasn't aware he was showing. "How are you so sure about that?" she asked quietly.

Sighing, he looked away, at first not answering. She waited, not probing him or anything. And somehow, that compelled him even more to answer in the end than any probing she could have done. "I'm going to be the next head of Huntzberger Media Cooperation, Ace. You can be sure that Daddy dearest made sure I know how the business worked ever since I grasped the concept of one hand washes the other. And fact is that while the press is quite free, it's not completely free, all in the name of national security," he told her quietly, not looking at her and definitely not wanting to have this conversation or any other reminder of the life that lied ahead of him - that was forced upon him.

Somehow, she seemed to sense this, because he felt her eyes looking away from him and when they came back, they didn't feel as heavy as they had only a few seconds before. Plus, she changed the topic. "So, judging from the snoring I'm guessing that you love the theater," she commented dryly.

Logan smirked, glad and thankful to return to far more entertaining topics. "That was not a snore," he protested, laughing. "It was a groan."

"It was not a painful play," she stated and he contemplated to give her an incredulous look. Then again, she _had _said that she had seen worse, something he totally believed after having read some of her critiques. Perhaps he had been lucky that the play had just been horrible and not that bad. Then again, no way was he conceding that easily. He was the master and commander after all, wasn't he?

"Any play is a painful play for me," he told her, not quite lying. He really wasn't that big a fan of theatre - in any form.

"Well, that's too bad, because you're going to miss out on some wonderful things," she lectured him.

"Yeah, like what?" Logan wanted to know, sarcastic.

Rory smiled up at him. "My mom took me to see Caroline, or Chan In New York, Tony Kushner's musical, and it was the most amazing thing we ever saw. Tony Kushner wrote Angels In America," she informed him.

Logan almost raised an eyebrow. Who exactly did she think she was talking to? He may not like the theatre, that didn't mean he didn't know the Who's Who of the theatre world. "I know who Tony Kushner is," he reminded her of just that fact.

"So you've seen his plays?" she asked surprised.

Unfortunately yes, though he had to admit that his musicals hadn't been that bad indeed. No need to let Ace off the hook so easily though. They stopped and he reluctantly let go of her, turning to face her though. "No, my mom's plays Canasta with him every month he's in town," he answered coolly.

Her eyes widened. "Tony Kushner plays Canasta with your mother?" she gasped, obviously unsure if he was joking.

He grinned. "Badly, but yes." He nodded.

She stared at him for a moment longer, judging his response and finally coming to the decision to believe him. "You have a magical life, Huntzberger!" she sighed, her eyes a little starry if he wasn't completely incorrect. "And you don't even know it," she added, though there was no blame in her voice.

For a moment, he stared into her eyes and all he could think about was that she was right. He was so accustomed to his life that he never had bothered to stop and look at it with the eyes of an outsider. It was one of the things he loved about spending his time with his Ace. She had a habit to make him open his eyes and look at things in a different way, make something absolutely common and normal for him shine in a new light. Or take a closer look at it. Mostly, that was a very interesting experience - but sometimes it also was uncomfortable. But right now, it was good and he was content with that.

"So, where to next?" he asked, coming back to the here and now - and the little surprise he had in the sleeve for her.

She shrugged. "Oh, I don't know. Mah Jongg with Mamet?" she asked, smiling.

He smiled back amused but decided to not comment on that one. He was too eager to see her face when she grew aware of his little surprise. "How does ice cream sound?" he asked.

Just like he had predicted, her eyes lit up. One thing for sure, his Ace could always be goaded by food, especially when it held many calories and was sweet on top of it all. "Ice cream sounds great," she answered eagerly.

He grinned, satisfied. "Then ice cream it is," he said and grabbed her hand, quickly pulling her after him as he headed to the cafeteria.

"Whoa, Logan! Where are we going? Slow down!" she exclaimed, but he could hear the laughter in her voice, which made him only grin more.

"Slow down and you die, Ace," he told her, unfazed, but did slow down a tad bit. A broken ankle was the last thing he wanted. Considering her high heels, that unfortunately was a likely scenario.

"Yeah, you go too fast in heels and you kind of die also," she remarked dryly, as if she had read his thoughts. Not that that was something new. Somehow, his Ace often had an insight into his thoughts like no other girl had had ever before. Hell, sometimes she even seamed to beat Finn and Colin at reading him. It was uncanny. And often downright annoying. But sometimes, it was also oddly comforting. As crazy as that was.

Before he could dwell too much on that though, they reached their destination and he pulled her into the dark doorway to the cafeteria. Quickly, he opened the door with the key the janitor had made him for two first row season tickets for the Yankees. But hell, he was pretty sure it would be worth the costs, he thought grinning as he led Rory inside and locked the door behind them again. With his Ace, he really had become almost obsessive with locking the doors. They took a few steps further into the room, their eyes adjusting to the darkness. Thanks to the light coming through the big windows, it wasn't that dark, once the eyes had adjusted. There was light enough for him to closely observe her reactions and more he didn't need. Impatiently, he watched as she took in the surroundings. Finally, she looked back at him.

"What are we doing?" she asked, confused.

He grinned mischievously. "We're getting ice cream," he told her.

A frown appeared between her eyes as she looked around. "But the dining hall's closed. We're breaking in," she stated, worriedly.

"That's a very negative way of looking at it," Logan said, amused. She was so cute when she was such a worry-nut.

Her eyes narrowed slightly. "How do you have a key to the dining hall?"

"I know a lot of very powerful locksmiths," Logan told her evasively, still grinning though. He had known that she would worry herself to death first and frankly said, he had looked almost as much forward to that as to the fun they'd have once she was past that worry. There just was something about calming and fueling her fears at the same time.

"Well, what happens if we get caught?" she continued to worry. "Could we get suspended? They can't kick you out of school for this, can they?" she asked, fearfully.

Okay, someone was definitely going into overdrive here, Logan thought, mentally shaking his head. How on Earth could she believe that they would get suspended or even expelled for something like this? Clearly, she really was a total virgin to the naughtiness of college life. Not that they were going to get caught. He also happened to have excellent contacts to the campus security and a decent tip had ensured that the security guards would turn a blind eye on him - which didn't mean that Logan planned to do anything to catch their attendance. But of course, Ace didn't know that. And while he had no intention on telling her that and give her an insight into just how deep his network here ran, it was clear that it was high time to start the calm down process or she'd insist on leaving any seconds now.

"Hey relax," he reassured her calmingly. "Look around. For tonight this is all yours."

His words seemed to have the desired effect as she seemed to relax a big deal, once again looking around, just like he had told her and he was pleased to see a smile starting to lift the corners of her mouth.

"It _is_ kind of cool," she admitted, giving a slight nod.

He broke out into a grin. "Wait till you see the kitchen!" he promised her excitedly, not caring that he was sounding way too much like a little boy on Christmas. Not that he could speak out of experience. Christmas always had been a rather cold and stiff celebration in his family.

"Whoa!" Her eyes went past him and widened in amazement and already she hurried past him to come to a stand in front of the cereal boxes, already filled up for the breakfast the next day. He turned and followed her, never taking his eyes off her face, now gleaming with wonder. "Oh, I've never seen the cereal completely full before. I'm never here early enough!" She pointed out one of the boxes, glancing at him triumphantly. "I _knew _they had Cocoa Puffs!"

"Go crazy, Ace," Logan laughed, not even amazed anymore that his Ace could get so excited about cereal.

"No, we're getting ice cream," she protested, looking at him wide-eyed.

God, how exactly had he ended up with such an innocent, _correct _girl, Logan wondered while he returned her the strange look. "There's no rule that says you can't have ice cream and cereal," he told her the obvious and nodded at the cereal. "Go on, get your Cocoa Puffs."

Her eyes lightening up like helluva of stars, she grabbed a bowl and served herself with the Cocoa Puffs. "First Cocoa Puffs of the day! This is a historic moment," she announced and shoved a handful of the Puffs into her mouth, happily munching on them.

More than happy about her excitement, Logan laughed, and started to move past her towards the kitchen. "Okay. Next stop, ice cream."

"Mmm," she nodded, but instead of following him, turned into the opposite direction.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

She pointed to the cashier. "I'm looking for the swipe machine so I can deduct points from my meal plan."

He stared at her, trying to detect if she was kidding, but he just couldn't tell for sure. "You're kidding, right?" he asked, perplexed.

"Well, the school pays for the food," she answered though.

She _was_ serious.

Really, how _had_ he ended up with such an angel of a girl? That something this honest still existed in this world... Boy, she had still to learn so many things - but then, Logan was more than willing to teach her all those wonderful things.

"Trust me," he sighed. "With all the money my family has donated to this school, they can afford to be out of a few Cocoa Puffs," he assured her. Not to mention with all the money her own family had donated over the generations, but knowing how she reacted to that topic, he wisely chose not to mention that. "Let's go," he instead told her.

He was proud of her that she only hesitated a few seconds before giving in and smiling back at him. "This is fun," she declared, sounding genuinely happy.

Logan paused and stared at her for a moment, taking in the excited eyes, the slight pinkness of her cheeks and that smile that could weaken even the strongest of them. He smiled. "You're an easy girl to please," he told her quietly and leaned in to steal a kiss from her, tender like they never had shared one before. And somehow, this tender, sweet kiss did more to him than any passionate lip-lock ever could, even hers. Not to his lust, but to the wholeness of his being. Startled, he turned away. "Let's hit the kitchen," he said, his voice a tad bit rougher.

"'kay," she agreed and followed him.

While he entered the kitchen, Logan told his fast beating heart to slow down. What he had told Rory before was right: She was easy to please. On the other hand, he couldn't think of any other girl he had ever known or dated that would have been this excited about something as simple as Cocoa Puffs. Hell, most girls would have been deeply disappointment if all he had offered them was a break in into the dining hall. Probably every other girl on this planet. They would have wanted him to book the Starlight Room just for themselves, let them have a pick out of any jewelry at Cartier. Or if they had to break in somewhere in Yale, then the dean's office to have sex on his desk. Not so his Ace though. If he had pulled anything remotely close to that, she would have seriously been displeased and simply would have let him standing there alone, probably refusing to ever give him the time of the day again. It made pleasing her a lot cheaper - but on the other hand, in a way, also a lot harder because to come up with something like this, find another new surprise that would throw her and make those killer blue eyes sparkling with excitement took a lot more thinking and demanded of him to be a lot more creative and imaginative than he ever had had to be before in his life. Another one of the reasons why he loved to spend so much time with her, why he was drawn to her so much. She was a constant challenge, in so many different ways and Heaven knew he never had been able to resist any challenge and when it came wrapped up in such a beautiful, entertaining package, how was he supposed to resist then?

Not at all. Right.

Reminding himself that he was on a date, he turned around to ask Ace what flavor she wanted and stared into empty space. Where...

Frowning, he walked back to the door and looked outside. Sure enough, there she stood, still in front of the cereal boxes and leaving something on the counter that suspiciously looked a lot like a bill. Rolling his eyes, he shook his head, knowing better than to argue with her again. He'd just make sure later on that the bill would find its way back into her purse. "Ace, come on!" he urged her, impatiently.

"I'm coming," she called back and when he saw that she was indeed heading towards the kitchen finally, Logan draw back and, shaking his head again, moved over to the giant freezer he knew the ice cream was in. If his Ace was going to worry so much about a few Cocoa Puffs, what could he expect for the ice-cream? Sighing, he decided that it was probably best to assure her right on that he was going to pay for it or even better, already had paid for them. In a way, that was right after all. Those season tickets for the Yankees had cost a small fortune, not that it had put any dent into his wallet, but still. And the tip for the security guard had been quite generous as well. Actually, this was fast coming to be some of the most expensive ice-cream he ever had had.

The kitchen door falling close, Logan glanced over, watching as Ace took in the surroundings. She probably had never been in the kitchen before. As the room had no windows, he had already turned on the light and so was finally able to see her in full light, not the dim light of the cafeteria that shone through the many and big windows. Much better.

"So this is the place where all the delicious things come from," she stated pragmatically and walked over to join him.

"Yep, the best cafeteria food one could think of," Logan nodded and glanced at her, smiling. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be," she answered, giving him a questioning look.

"Then be prepared to be floored," he announced dramatically and swung open the freezer door.

Indeed, the eyes of his Ace once more widened when she took in the amount of various giant sized boxes, all filled with ice cream. "They were holding out on us!" she accused, her eyes falling on a box labeled with 'Jamaica' - among other flavors she never had seen offered.

"Well Ace, this is a cafeteria... they hardly can serve the students alcohol flavored ice," Logan smirked. "That's just for the professors and special guests."

"Pah, as if that would take any influence on us. Hello... wild college life, remember? A scoop of rum ice cream would hardly be of any significance," she protested, her eyes still roaming over all the ice cream. When she turned her eyes towards Logan, they were slightly dazed. "You know, this actually could be The day."

"What day?" Logan asked, raising an eyebrow.

"That I manage to eat myself sick with ice cream," she whispered, glancing back at the mounts and mounts of ice cream. "It's never been heard of before. A Gilmore cannot possibly get sick by the sweet nectar that ice cream is." She sighed, heavenly. "But tonight, tonight it actually may happen."

"You do know that you can stop before you get sick, right?" Logan reminded her, smirk back in full force.

She turned annoyed eyes towards him. "Are you kidding? When I finally can dug in and have the chance to test the tolerance level my body has on ice cream? No way!"

Logan studied her for a moment, a small worry slowly seeping in... Something in her eyes... He had figured they'd scoop a bowl or two of the ice cream. Okay, perhaps rather four to five in Ace's case. Now though... she looked as if she was on a mission now and that made him seriously worrying about having to organize a fresh delivery of ice cream tomorrow morning to replace their 'dessert'. He had seen eat Rory before, after all.

"And here I thought you'd freak out about paying for the ice cream as well..." he muttered, shaking his head.

The look Ace gave him told him just how stupid that thought had been. "When presented with an opportunity as this? Have you any idea how long Mom and I had waited for this - nirvana? We never could test our limit, it would have cost way too much. Beside, Doosey's has only that much ice cream." She looked back at the ice cream and sighed heavenly again. "Besides, you are going to pay for it anyway," she stated in a matter of fact way.

"Oh, am I?" Logan asked, raising an eyebrow. "Good to let me know."

"Well, now you know," she replied dryly and started to smile.

"Of course I'm only going to pay for it if there is visibly missing an amount of ice cream that can't be ignored," he continued, sweetly, asking himself at the same time what the hell he was doing.

Her blue eyes settled back onto him, one eyebrow raised. Then she smiled, shaking her head. "Oh Logan. When will you learn to better not challenge me, Huntzberger? Especially whenever food is involved."

He knew he was possibly unsetting a force not to be reckoned with - but what the heck, where would be the fun otherwise? He smiled back at her. "What can I say, I just love a challenge."

"You're on Huntzberger, you're on," Ace said, her eyes gleaming dangerously. "So? what are we waiting for? Let's dig in!" she exclaimed, grabbed a bowl and draw out the first box.

"Though I might add that we do need to get out of here before five am when the staff comes in for work," Logan reminded her, grabbing himself a bowl as well. He didn't plan to stay here all night - but he had seen Rory eat before and found it wise to make this one clear right from the beginning.

"Wuss," she simply answered, turning to get a second box out.

Wuss? Wuss? Oh, okay, that was it. She so was on right now!

* * *

"Come on, Ace, you get that one as well. Just this one more," Logan fired her on, seeing the look she gave the spoon in front of her, recognizing it only too well. It was exactly the look he had given his last spoon, almost an hour and a half ago.

"You already said that twelve spoons ago," she muttered, but with a sigh, slowly started to lick the ice cream off the spoon. Once it was clean, she put it back into the empty bowl and with a groan, flopped back to sprawl out on the floor. "Okay. That's it. No more. Not even a drop more. I'm full. I'm beyond full. So full that right now, I'm pretty sure I'm not going to have ice cream again for quite a while to come. Of course, in two days max, I'm going to have ice cream again, my head knows that, but my stomach? He rebels even at the thought of it right now."

"You're not going to be actually sick?" Logan asked, looking around for a basket or something, just in case.

She closed her eyes and took her time to answer. Finally, she shook her head. "No, no I don't think so. Provided I don't have to eat any more ice cream... Or have to go jog."

At that, Logan snorted. "Yeah right. You and jogging. 'course that's going to happen any time soon."

Her eyes still closed, she smiled. "I tried it once, you know? Thought we'd see what all that haze was about. So we jogged around our street, you know, to one end, up the street to the other end and then back to our house. Not that the street is particularly long, only five houses with their gardens."

"And how far did you come?" Logan asked, curiously.

Her smile deepened. "Just to the neighbor's house."

He was pretty sure he knew the answer, but he had to know for sure. "On the way back?"

"Are you kidding?" came her incredulous response immediately. "Five Kropocks and we knew that running definitely was not our sport. Two more Kropocks and we were panting and our sides hurting. Babette, that's our neighbor, was very worried for a moment there. We ended up relaxing in her living room, treated with hot chocolate and cookies."

Logan let out a bark of laughter and flopped down beside her. "You know, I'm slightly worried that I don't even bother myself anymore with wondering if you're kidding. You, Rory Gilmore, are one strange, strange girl." He shook his head, smiling. "And I really wonder where all that food goes to."

"Genes," she answered simply.

"Apparently," Logan said dryly and looked at the now closed freezer. "What do you think, how much did we eat?"

"No idea. But it probably are a few pints. More than half a dozen for sure, but I'm not sure how much more or if it's even close to a dozen," she answered and groaned. "And I'd rather not think about that now or I am going to be sick." She rose her arm and gave Logan's upper arm a weak punch. "Why did you let me eat so much anyway?"

"Hey, this contest had been your idea as I may remind you," Logan protested, propping himself up onto an elbow. "So don't blame me."

One of her eyes opened a slit. "Ice cream - your idea. To provide unlimited ice cream - your doing. Result: your fault."

"Uh-uh, Ace, you're not going to blame this on anyone than you. No one forced you to challenge yourself and me to see how much ice cream we can eat," Logan patiently told her.

"Huntzberger, you better learn to never offer a Gilmore girl any unlimited kind of food. That, in itself, is and always will be a challenge we cannot resist," she answered. "So yeah, the blame definitely is on you. You're just grumpy that you lost."

Logan laughed. "Trust me, Ace, I always play to win, but even I was realistic enough to know that I'm not going to win this one. I've seen you eat."

"Oh, smart, are you?" she asked, coyly, and opened her other eye as well to look up at him with a smile. "And after this night, I'll even allow you that last comment. I think now you truly have seen me eat."

He nodded. "That I have." Boy, was that an understatement. For the better part of three hours, they had eaten ice cream. Well, Rory had eaten ice cream. Logan had to give in way before her. Not that he had been bored the rest of the time. They had talked a lot. And watching Rory lick all that ice cream had excited him more than just a little. "And Ace, you never really had any doubt about my smartness, hadn't you?"

She shrugged. "There's smart and smart."

He raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

She nodded. "Hmm... there's the book and history and fact knowing kind of smart. Then there's the life living kind of smart. And there's the wisdom kind of smart." She looked him up and down. "I give you the first kind of smart. And I guess part of the second. The third though..." she shook her head. "I don't think anyone as young as us can have that kind of smart. Unless their lives truly had been very hard and painful so far."

Logan thought that over for a moment. He agreed on her first and third point, but the second? "I think I've lived and lived out enough to get that smartness more than just partly," he contradicted.

"Of course you do," she said with a smile. "But sorry, you only get that partly. You're rich. And rich persons, while they have their problems as well, I know that, still won't ever grasp that fully, as long as they stay rich. Having to have to worry about money and how to provide for yourself and perhaps even a family is a big deal of that one."

There was something in her voice that warned Logan to take her seriously. But then, after having heard about her life and that of her friends, he knew that she had seen some of that struggle herself - despite being a Gilmore. "You really don't like the rich, do you?" he asked, and somehow, he dreaded her answer.

Once again, she took her time to answer. Finally, she slowly shook her head. "No. No, I don't. Not by category. Not anymore." She gave him a slight smile. "Mom really hates that life and for a long time, all I really knew was her opinion and naturally, I went by that. And going to Chilton, having to deal with all the spoiled, rich kids there, all I could say was that she had been right. There are things in the rich I really don't like. Arrogance," she gave him a poignant look. "Snobbism. The disregard of the daily worries so many of you display. The stiffness the older generations all seem to have." She sighed. "But I've learned, thanks to my grandparents, to Paris - to you and your friends - that being rich can be hard as well. In other ways. And that just because you're all spoiled and prejudiced, you're not automatically bad people not worth knowing." She smiled and her tone lightened. "That one actually can have quite a lot of fun with you bunch."

Well, considering her attitude towards him when they had met, this was definitely an improvement. Which was good, not just for his benefit, but also for hers. She may not want to realize or accept it, but no matter what, she'd end up rich, with at least all the heavy wealth of the old, successful family Gilmore. So the sooner she learned to come to terms with her issues against the rich, the better. Not that becoming rich automatically meant that you changed. Actually, he was pretty sure that no money of this world could manage to shake up Rory's beliefs and principles. Besides, Logan had to admit that Ace had a few points there in her observations. As well on the negative side as on the positive side. Of course, he was only to go into the positive sides.

"I well hope you have fun with us or we would do something seriously wrong," he told her with a nod, quite haughtily.

"And there comes the famous ego of one Logan Huntzberger," she sighed, rolling her eyes.

"Well, I let you know that I had confirmed through more than just one source that I, my dear Ace, am an expert fun provider," Logan told her, giving her a wicked and naughty grin all in one.

"Oh, I'm absolutely sure of that," she answered with a nod, her voice perfectly serious and still, he just knew she was mocking him, obvious in the twinkle in her eyes.

"Ace," he said amicably. "You don't want me to prove that one to you right now. Not that I am already proving it, after all, I dare say you already had quite some fun tonight."

"Perhaps..." she said, smiling.

He smirked. "Perhaps?" he repeated, unbelieving, shaking his head before he moved quickly, rolling on top of her and straddling her, effectively pinning her to the floor. "Might want to rethink that?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She laughed. "Okay, okay, it was a wonderful, funny night, oh great master of entertainment," she obediently conceded, but the twinkle that mocked him was still very present in her eyes. "Now, would you please get off me?"

His other eyebrow rose. "I don't know, Ace. That hardly had sounded very sincere. I don't think I can let you off the hook yet."

She shook her head. "You better, 'cause you won't hear it another time, Huntzberger. And Logan, there's no way we're going to have sex here."

He hadn't planned on that, but... "No?"

Her answer was firm and absolute. "No."

Hmm... Using the advantage of her immobility, Logan leaned down to kiss her, taking his time to explore her mouth and the different flavors of ice he could still taste on her lips, her tongue, deepening the kiss slowly but steadily until he had to break away before he couldn't anymore. "You really so sure about that?" he whispered, leaning his forehead against hers.

"Yeah," she said quietly, but giving a deep, regretful sigh. "As enticing as the thought is... I can't help but think of all the other people, sneaking in here and have sex on the floor, the counter, the tables..." She crunched up her face as she shuddered. "Nope, not going to add to that. I look CSI. I know about the invisible traces. Actually, I'm really considering if I ever can eat here in peace again."

Her words conjuring unwelcome images up for Logan as well, he shook his head to get rid of them. Laughing, he gave her a quick kiss but then got off her, standing up. With a smile he leaned down and held up his hand. "In that case, and forever thankful for the vivid images now in my head, Ace, I suggest we get out of here and move somewhere more comfortable - and crowded. Though I doubt there are that many who have broken in here before."

Rory laid her hands into Logan's and let him hoist her up. "Probably not, but I bet it has happened before."

Probably, Logan thought as he leaned down once again to pick up her coat and his jacket. "But I bet that we were the first who made an ice cream eating contest."

Chuckling, she slipped into her coat and picked up her scarf while Logan picked up the used bowls and put them to a pile of dirty dishes. "No, I think that was definitely a first. Your honor's safe."

"Hey, I never said that I aimed to be first doing this here," he protested as he held open the door to the hall for her.

"No, but I know how much you like to be unique," Ace said, walking ahead of him.

"Considering how old the human race is and through what times it had gone through, I doubt that there is anything left that is truly unique," Logan contradicted her. "I strive to be not common and boring and I think _that_ I manage quite well." They passed the cereal boxes and quickly, he snatched up the bill his Ace had left there earlier on, snuggling it quickly into the left pocket of his jacket, glad that she was ahead and not noticing it. But really, they couldn't leave any evidence behind. And Yale could afford those few Cocoa Puffs she had eaten.

"Ego Logan, watch your ego before it bursts through the roof," Rory reminded him, stopping before the door and waiting for Logan to unlock the door.

"You know, somehow I find your obsession with what you constantly call my ego and in reality is my greatness a bit worrisome. Not that I can blame you for that. It is hard to resist me," Logan said while he opened the door, peeked outside and then motioned her to slip through.

"I can resist pretty well right now," she remarked wryly while he relocked the door.

"Sure," Logan drawled, pulling her once again into his side by wrapping one of his arms around her waist as they started to head towards her dorm.

"You just wait," she muttered under her breath and he smiled, choosing not to further comment on this. They both knew she wanted him after all. Just like he wanted her.

"So... You like CSI?" he instead changed the topic.

"Who doesn't?" she asked back, giving him a look.

"Oh, I know a few deranged people who have not fallen under the magic spell of crime scenes investigators," Logan told her.

"Really?" She shook her head. "They don't know what they miss."

"Hear, hear," Logan agreed. "Okay Ace, favorite show?"

"The original of course. No one beats Grissom. Though I do like Sinise in CSI New York as well, but the original cast is still the best," she answered without hesitation.

"I guess that answers the question about the favorite character," Logan mused.

Rory shrugged. "Well, Grissom is Grissom. He's a genius. But actually, my favorite is Greg. One just has to love him. Closely followed by Nick."

"Really? Greg?" Logan asked, checking to see if she was joking.

But she nodded her head. "He's so original. And his lines... wonderful. Besides, I found it interesting to see how he grows to be an investigator though I do miss his antics in the lab."

"You can't fool me, Ace. admit it: you just have a faible for blondes," Logan indicted, smirking.

"Yeah, you got me there. That's why I also like Grissom and Nick and Mac. And let's not forget all the dozens of other characters I like and who are anything else but blonde," she replied sarcastically.

"It's okay, Ace, you don't have to admit it," he told her, gazing down into her eyes, knowing full well how patronizing his voice sounded - just what he had aimed for. "As long as we both know it, we can keep it our secret."

"Jeez, sometimes I really ask myself why I even bother with a self-arrogant person like you," she asked herself out loud, smiling though.

"For my perfect, blonde hair?" Logan provided her with the answer, pretty sure that right now, his eyes were twinkling as well.

They reached her dorm and Rory pulled away from Logan to unlock her door. Before she opened it though, she turned back, still smiling but he could see that she had grown serious. "Thanks Logan. This night... it was great," she said softly.

Logan stepped closer to her, cupped her face with his right hand and kissed her. "My pleasure," he whispered, seriously as well.

Sending a blinding smile his way, she nodded and turned to open her door and step inside. Logan was just about to follow her when abruptly, she whirled back around, her face frozen in horror and pushed the door shut again, leaning against it, groaning, shaking her head, even slightly banging it against the hard wood behind her.

"Ace?"

"Doyle... couch... _naked_..." she managed to mutter, eyes tightly squeezed shut. "Crafted..."

His eyes widening, Logan stared at her, then at the door behind her. Okay, the first three words were easily to put together - unfortunately. It sure was an image he could have well lived without. But...

"Crafted?" he repeated, befuddled.

She shakily nodded. "Body... painted... Paris... crafted."

Logan's eyebrows furrowed together as he tried to digest her stuttered words. Finally, he gaped flabbergasted at her. "You mean... Paris painted Doyle?" he asked, incredulous, instantly making a face at _that_ image conjuring up in his head.

She numbly nodded, eyes still tightly closed. "Light in her craft corner was on, her paintings out, so I think... No, no, no!" she groaned, shaking her head furiously. "Must not think, must not think. Must. Not. Think."

Logan seconded that - unfortunately, he was pretty sure it was already too late for that. Normally, he'd find such a thing hilarious. If it had been Colin and Finn... He'd take as many pictures as he could and would never, until his dying days, let them forget about it. But this was _Doyle_... And Paris.

Ugh!

"Ace... You have the weirdest, craziest persons as friends that one can imagine," he rumbled deeply. "And this is coming from me, the one with Finn as his best friend, remember? And Colin."

Her eyes opened to glare at him. "Hey! Doyle's not my friend!"

"But Paris is," he pointed out. "And don't kid me, I know you like Doyle - on some level at least."

"But not naked on my couch with paint all over his - ugh!" she harshly whispered and immediately stopped herself, shaking her head. "No, no, no, not going there..."

Over his..._?_

Oh yeah, definitely not going there... Sighing, he stared at the door. "Uh... and what now? Want to come over to my place?" he asked, frowningly.

Letting out a deep sigh as well, Rory glanced at the door and finally shook her head, defeated. "As much as I don't want to get in there again and... well... uh, and take you up on your offer, I can't... All my stuff's here, my first class starts at nine and I really am too tired to get up early to come here to get my things..."

"I don't suppose your window's open?" Logan wanted to know, hopefully.

She shook her head.

"Well then... Let's get it behind us," he sighed, making a grimace.

Rory looked at him. "You don't have to, I mean, you could..."

Logan shrugged. "Crowning end of this date is us going to bed together, Ace, no naked men are going to ruin my perfect date plan." Not even when it was Doyle who was naked. "Besides, I have seen naked, painted guys before." Though none of them had been _Doyle_. Right. "Plus, the way I see it, I'll just keep my eyes shut and trust you to lead me safely to the shelter of your room."

Her eyebrows shot up. "Oh, you figure, huh? And why am I the one who's got to walk in there with my eyes open? Why not you?"

"Your dorm, your deranged friend's boyfriend," he listed out the obvious. "Besides, you've already seen it, the damage's already done and there's no reason to burn my poor, innocent eyes as well."

She scowled. "And what happened to chivalry? Ever heard of that?"

"Chivalry is overrated," Logan replied, unfazed. "But why don't you go blind as well?" he suggested. "It's your dorm. Surely you'll find the way even in the dark, don't you?"

"Yeah..." She glanced unsurely at her door. "Hmm, okay, I could do that... but, uh... Are we overreacting here a bit? Acting like chickens?"

Logan snorted and shook his head. "There are boundaries. Doyle, Ace. _Naked_. Painted."

"Right... Okay..." She took a deep breath and turned back around, griping the door knob and looked back over her shoulder at him when he took hold of her free hand. "Ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," Logan answered and laughed, waving at her. "Lead the way, Ace."

"Paris is so going to pay for this," Ace muttered venomously and opened the door.

* * *

"Oh, this party is definitely going to be the best ever," Finn pronounced, plopping down onto the stool vis-à-vis of Logan.

"Sure. Aren't they always?" Logan answered, absentmindedly.

"'course, but this time it will be even better. The costumes are going to be so cool! And I've gone to a rehearsal of the band today and they're fucking rocking!" Finn happily announced, then his grin turned wicked. "Hehe, and I managed that you can look forward to see Colin as a blonde. Yes, I, the great Finn, talked Colin into wearing a blond wig - with long hair. Well, not really long, but shoulder long. And to wear leather. Oh, we so are going to have to make pictures - lots and lots of them!"

"Hmm, sounds good," Logan answered idly, poking at his spaghetti. Finn's words made him think of the previous night again... not that he had stopped thinking about that ever since sometime this morning.

Finn gave him a strange look. "But after that, I think the real hit of the party would be if at its peak, we all shed out of our costumes and go for the rest of it naked," he added, not leaving Logan out of his eyes.

Logan nodded vaguely. "Sure, why not."

"Okay, what's going on now?" Finn asked, frowning.

But Logan didn't listen, his mind elsewhere, mulling over the same old problem that had plagued him since the beginning of this year. Lorelai Leigh Gilmore.

"Logan!"

"What?" Blinking, Logan's eyes snapped up from the plate in front of him. "Oh... hey Finn. Uh... did you say something?"

Finn looked at him, hard. "What's wrong now?"

Frowning, Logan looked down and started to roll up another fork of the spaghetti. "Nothing's wrong. Nothing at all," he answered, not quite truthfully - but not quite wrongly either.

He wasn't sure if something was wrong - and that was the problem.

What he knew though was that he definitely didn't want to talk about it. And especially not to Finn. Heaven knew he had already talked enough about Ace with his friends - fought enough.

"Where's Colin?" he asked, looking around and effectively changing the topic.

"Hartford. The paternity test is in and Big Mike summoned him for tonight, remember?" Finn reminded him.

Right... he knew that. "Oh yeah... What do you think? Is Colin going to have a little sister or brother soon?"

Finn shrugged. "My gut says no. Fate can't be so cruel and sick him on some poor soul as the big brother."

"Come on... He's not that bad," Logan defended Colin. "He could be a great big brother."

"Didn't say that. Let's rephrase: Fate's not so cruel to force a sibling onto him now," Finn corrected himself. "We both know that Colin's happy as a single child. Very happy. And it would be too late for any good relationship with the kid anyway." His green eyes fixed Logan's. "But you, my friend, are evading my questions, and very poorly at that. So spill it before it eats you up alive or even worse, before your mood deteriorates that much that it will ruin my wonderful party. What's wrong?"

Immediately looking down at his plate again, Logan shook his head. "Nothing's wrong," he repeated, as nonchalantly as he could muster.

Finn snorted. "Yeah, sure. Okay, what did she do now?"

"She didn't..." Quickly, Logan caught himself, frowning deeply. Dammit. "Who?" he asked innocently.

Finn smiled deridingly. "You really think you can kid _me_, mate? Wake up!"

Damn.

"She didn't do anything," Logan said tensely, knowing that if he didn't wanted to be bugged forever about it, he'd better give Finn something. "And nothing's wrong."

Finn wasn't satisfied though. "Then what _i_s the problem?"

"There is no problem!" Logan exclaimed exasperated.

Well actually, the absent of a problem was the problem, but he really didn't want to talk about it. Especially as he had yet to figure this out himself.

"Okay, sure, no need to get riled up," Finn relented, holding up his hands. His eyes were still piercing Logan though. "But you do know that you'll feel better if you tell Uncle Finn your problems. And it will be better because we all know that when left to think alone and unadvised, you go and make something incredibly stupid."

"Gee, thanks for the confidence in me," Logan muttered, shoving another fork of spaghetti into his mouth.

Finn shrugged. "Hey, it's not my fault, so you can't blame me for stating the obvious."

"I don't want to talk about it, okay?" Logan snapped, glaring at Finn. "There is nothing to talk about. Besides, I'm twenty-one. I'm well capable of sorting through my thoughts by myself and I can make decisions on my own just fine."

"Never said you couldn't," Finn answered unfazed. "Just that when you do that, you more often than not draw the complete wrong conclusions and then make big mistakes. So for your own good, why don't you just do the wise thing and just talk it out?"

"Seriously Finn, let it be," Logan warned, busying himself with hurriedly eating the rest of his spaghetti.

For a while, Finn just studied him, saying nothing. Finally, he shook his head. "Okay mate. But don't come whining to me afterwards. And Logan?"

Grudgingly, Logan looked back at him.

"Figure it out finally. For your own good but mostly 'cause you really start to get on my nerves. Commit to Reporter Girl or not, but make up your mind at last. And if you want to hear my opinion, which would be the wise thing to do for once, then for God's sake, a girl like her won't come your way that often, if ever again. Don't mess this chance up," Finn told him shortly, serious, before he stood up, starting to get his easy grin back. "I'm heading over to Rick's. Colin said he'd meet us there later on. Rosemary and Juliet are coming as well. And I have the feeling Rosemary will finally give up her incomprehensible resistance and fall to the power of my unbeatable charm." Thus said, he bounced away, leaving Logan to stare after him.

God, he hated it when Finn got all serious. It just was a tad bit too uncanny - and uncomfortable. Groaning, he pushed his plate away and buried his head into his hands, sighing deeply. On top of that, on the rare occasions Finn grew serious, he more than often was dead right with whatever he had to say and this time was no exception. Logan needed to figure out what was going on with him - and what he really wanted. He himself was bored with this months long indecision and imbalance that had him in its grip ever since he had met his Ace. But... he just was so confused... he had thought that once he'd have had her, this would stop. Instead, it got worse day by day. Why was everything he did with his Ace, even if it was something he had done countless times before, so new, so different? Why was everything that involved her so damn intense? Why couldn't he get enough of her, why was sex with her so different? Why was he feeling this slight unhappiness despite having everything he had wanted right from the beginning? Ace was his friend, they dated and had mindblowing sex and yet, he was still a free, unattached, stringless man.

So what exactly was his problem?

The problem was that last night, when they had safely made it past a naked, painted and loudly snoring Doyle into her room, all they had done was getting undressed and crawl into the comfort of her bed, snuggling into each other and fall asleep within minutes. The problem was, that this didn't bother Logan at all. In fact, he was okay with it, hell had even liked it. There was no regret or disappointment whatsoever that they _hadn't_ ended up having sex. The problem was that even before it had happened, he had known that there would be no sex in for him that night. It had been late and they both were tired after a long time and all that ice cream they had eaten. And yet he had followed her into her room, like it was the most natural thing on this world, without him asking if he could come in and also without her inviting him. It hadn't even crossed his mind not to go in with Rory, even though he knew there would be no sex and he was pretty sure neither had it occurred to Rory. The problem was that he didn't sleep with girls without the prospect of having sex. The problem was that last night's date shouldn't have been so great and all that without having had had sex. He shouldn't consider it as probably one of the bests dates he ever had had, only beaten by the first real date he had taken his Ace on and that without having gotten lucky.

The problem was that it bothered him that all this _didn't_ bother him. That he was even happy with the way his relationship with Rory was going and moving. Growing closer with each day they spent together.

And that just wasn't normal. And it sure as hell wasn't casual. He had dated a lot, had entertained quite a few casual acquaintances and he never would have been content with a date with one of those girls hat wouldn't have ended with them having sex. Especially not one he had so carefully prepared. Never.

Then again, he never would have gone to such lengths for one of those girls. He'd have taken them out to a restaurant, surely wouldn't have willingly gone with them to go see a musical and instead would have met them later on or on another day altogether. And he surely wouldn't have pulled all the strings he had to get that key and an undisturbed break-in into the dining hall to treat his girl to unlimited ice cream.

Nor would he ever think of them as his girl.

His.

But she wasn't his, was she? They were casual. No strings attached. Free as a bird.

And that was just how he wanted it to be. He didn't want to be tied to just one girl, he was way too young for that.

Yeah. Freedom, that was what he wanted, ultimately.

He'd better remembered that. And he should finally start to remind himself why he liked not to be attached to just one girl. The fun of having his pick among them, to go crazy with a girl without always having to analyze everything, worrying about her, being so damn confused all the time - well, at least whenever he wasn't with his Ace.

So yeah, his Ace was great and unique. And he definitely didn't want to break it off with her, no, absolutely not. But he needed to get back into the game. Remind himself that there were other girls than his Ace, many of them. Go out and have some meaningless, easy sex after which he wanted to go back to his dorm and not find his room cold and alone unless a certain blue-eyed girl was with him and not snuggling up to the warm body in his arms.

Yeah, exactly, that was what he wanted, what he needed.

But then why was he so unenthusiastic about even the thought of going out and find some random, willing girl to spend some hours with her?

* * *

He was reading the paper when Colin burst into his dorm the next morning. "Here you are! Where have you been last night?" Colin wanted to know, frowning.

"Around," Logan answered evadingly. Truth was that he had been here in his dorm, working on several papers and a new article. And that was because it was really high time to finally start working on them, the first paper due in two weeks, the article by next Wednesday. Yeah, that had been the only reason why he had decided against going out. It had nothing to do at all with the fact that he didn't want to go through with his decision to get back into the game. Nope, not at all. And with that he pushed these thoughts away and folded the paper when he suddenly remembered something else. "So... is another little McRea going to be running around soon?" he asked, looking closely at Colin to gauge his friend's mood.

But Colin's face split into one of the biggest and most relieved grins Logan had ever seen on him. "Nope. Turns out the stupid bitch hadn't only done the dirty deed with Dad, but also with one of the other partners. Thank God! We got lucky and it turned out that Lealson's the Daddy."

"Well, congratulations!" Logan exclaimed, truly happy for his friend. "I guess your Dad was relieved as well?"

"Yeah, but I think he was mostly angry," Colin answered, shrugging. "You know him. He has no problem with screwing around himself and be an absolute bastard but if he's the one screwed... Lealson can be happy if he gets to keep his job. As soon as Dad will see an opportunity to get rid of him, he's gone. The secretary was already fired - but then, I doubt that she planned to stay anyway, now that she ensured herself the support of a rich guy. Sure, she'd have preferred Dad's money, but Lealson's doing well enough himself."

Logan had no doubt about that. The McRea law firm was one of the bests in the country, definitely on the East Coast. And Michael McRea was not famous for his mercy - quite the contrary.

"And how did you react when your father told you about it?" he wondered.

With a sigh, Colin sat down. "How do you think? I sighed with relief, then proceeded to tell him that he had been lucky that it hadn't been his this time and then told him to finally go get the vasectomy done. I suggested to contact your dad for a good recommendation and then left before Dad had a chance to respond. I've turned off my phone and that's it."

Logan grinned. "You really told him to consult my dad?"

Colin grinned as well. "Yep."

"Oh, Dad's going to love this," Logan laughed, gleefully. The vasectomy was supposed to be a family secret. "God, I hope Big Mike's going to really do that!"

"Me too, though I'm not sure if he'll even consider it. I think, part of him even liked the idea that his boys may have fathered a child, even though he doesn't really want more offspring. Thank God. But if he decides to do it... Yeah, I think he really will give Mitchum a call. I just wish we could see Mitchum's face when he does that," Colin said, wriggling his eyebrows.

"Yeah, what a shame. I bet it would be hilarious and so totally worth the punishment he'll come up with for me telling you guys about the operation," Logan nodded, gaily.

"Well, as your best friends I deem it your duty to tell us such thing," Colin said. "But I'm here because I wanted to go over the details for Finn's birthday with you."

Logan rolled his eyes. "Colin, how many times do you want to do that? It's all settled and confirmed and planned out minutely."

"Being well prepared..."

"...saves time and avoids trouble, I know," Logan finished the sentence for him. He had heard that one only about a few thousand times after all. "But what's there still to discuss, huh? We leave five pm for Chicago, enough time for being ready for the game at eight. We'll receive our task at the airport and all the necessary supplies for the hunt are already in the plane. The jump for tomorrow, eleven eleven am sharp, is booked and the parachutes are packed and controlled already by us. Lope's meeting us at one thirty for the traditional birthday lunch and in the afternoon, the MOMA has agreed to give us a personal tour, including their entire collection, even the one's not currently in exhibition - and damn Finn for liking art so much. We hit dinner at The Kakadou to eat tons and tons of Australian food that's way too salty and then head back to be on time for the party. And the tour tickets for Depeche Mode are going to send him into the ninth heaven."

"Okay, okay, I'm quiet already," Colin relented. "You think Finn will like it?"

"Are you kidding? He wanted to do one of those murder hunts through Chicago for ages. He'll love it." Logan made a face. "And probably won't shut up for months to come about it. Same with the MOMA. How many times has he dragged us there now and complained about not being allowed into the restricted areas to see the entire collection? The tradition to make that jump at his exact birth time was started by him and is a must, as well as lunch with Lope. And we all know how much he loves The Kakadou. If Finn has a favorite restaurant, it's this one."

"Yeah. You're right. He'll like it. But the schedule's pretty tight," Colin gave to consider.

Logan shrugged. "So what? We're not amateurs after all. And if we go light on sleep, we should have no problem at all."

"Right. You're right. It's just... you know how Finn is with his birthday," Colin sighed.

"Yeah, absolutely and utterly crazy. More than normal anyway," Logan laughed. "But he'll love it, trust me."

"Okay, I better get back. I still have to pack his bag and make sure he doesn't vanish before we can kidnap him," Colin said, standing up.

"Yeah, like on his eighteenth. All that work nearly wasted," Logan sighed and got up as well. "Though I think he knows by now not to vanish around his birthday."

"Yeah, as long as there's not a redhead who lures him away," Colin nodded. "See you this afternoon. Don't be late."

"I won't, Mom," Logan assured Colin, shaking his head. "I'm working on some of my assignments. Need to hit the library but otherwise, I'll probably be here in case anything comes up. Something real, Colin," he warned, giving the worrynut a look.

"Okay, okay. Oh, and don't forget the whiskey!" Colin reminded him and was gone.

"As if I'd ever," murmured Logan, rolling his eyes.

Forget the booze on Finn's birthday... Now _that_ really was an impossibility.

* * *

Something was wrong. The assistant at the desk in the library was acting very difficult, giving short answers, refusing to come his way even an inch and what exactly was with those glares she sent him whenever she glanced at him? Logan was pretty sure that it wasn't one of his ex-bedmates, he'd remember her then. Besides, she so totally wasn't his type and...

Oh...

Fuck.

No wonder she acted so mad. How could he have forgotten... No. Didn't matter. He needed to do damage control, immediately. With the way he worked, he couldn't afford to have the library staff mad at him. With a quick glance at her name plate, he leaned onto the counter, forcing the black haired girl through his proximity to look at him.

"Hey Meg... I... I wanted to tell you how sorry I am that I never came back onto that dinner I promised you," he told her quietly with all the sincerity he could muster. It wasn't that hard. He really was sorry to have totally forgotten about that. Not because he was so keen on going out with her, but because he had promised it and with his negligence may have lost a helpful source here in the library. "That's really inexcusable. There just had been a lot going on lately and I fear it totally slipped my mind. I'm really sorry about that."

Meg stared down at the counter, blushing a tad bit. Good. That meant that he wasn't talking to deaf ears.

"In fact, why don't you let me make up for that inexcusable negligence? When's your lunch break?" he asked her.

Startled, she looked up. "Uh... eleven thirty?"

Logan quickly glanced at his watch. Twenty minutes. Okay, that was manageable. "Then let me treat you to lunch. I know it's not dinner like I promised, but I know a great place over on State Street that makes the most delicious chicken you've ever eaten. And their desserts are a dream as well. What do you say?" She looked indecisive so Logan leaned a tad bit closer, smiling ruefully. "I know this is sudden, but you helped me so much to get me those books I had asked for so rapidly and I'm really ashamed how I thanked you for it - or rather said my lack of gratitude. So please let me take you out to lunch at least."

The girl bit her lip and cast a nervous glance around. "But... what about your girlfriend?"

This question came so totally out of the blue, that Logan was thrown off the game completely. Frowning deeply, he straightened up - hell, he jerked up. "My _what_?"

Another nervous glance around. "Your girlfriend? Rory Gilmore?"

Logan stared at her, flabbergasted. "What? But..." He shook his head. "Listen, Rory's not my girlfriend. We're just friends." He cringed a little at these words. Why was beyond him, it was the simple truth after all.

Now Meg frowned. "Really? Because I've heard otherwise. The whole campus is buzzing about you two. And I've seen you come pick her up here once and you two looked like you were together."

"Well we're not," Logan snapped, a bit more harshful than intended. So the whole school was buzzing about them? Why hadn't he heard of that before? Had Ace heard anything? But she had never said anything. She would have said something, wouldn't she have? He took a deep breath. "Look, Ace and I are - close friends. But that's all we are." He looked at her. "I mean, if she were my girlfriend, would I be here, asking you out?"

The girl looked unsure and that irritated Logan a tad bit. Okay, so he knew he was a womanizer, that was no secret. But he never had been in a relationship and had committed himself to just one girl. Once he did, he didn't plan to cheat on her. That wasn't how he worked. Besides, with having such a wonderful girl as his Ace all to himself why should he ever want to go look around elsewhere?

At that thought, his eyes widened and he clenched his jaw and hands.

Fuck it all to hell.

He hadn't just thought that. He simply hadn't.

Focusing onto the girl, he smiled at her, with all the power of his potent charm. "I wouldn't. But I really want to go have lunch with you, Meg. So... what do you say? You coming?"

She blushed and her gaze darted away for a moment. "Sure. Meet me outside in about twenty minutes?"

Logan's smile widened. "Absolutely," he promised her confidently and with a wink at her, he grabbed his books and turned away, quickly walking away. Instantly, the grin dropped away.

Shit.

What the hell had he done now?

* * *

"So there he was and started to yell loudly for the Kama Sutra, not bothered at all by the whole, full library that heard him," Meg said, laughing quietly.

Logan laughed. "I never thought that working in a library can be that fun."

"You wouldn't believe the people who sometimes come," Meg nodded. "I tell you, I've seen more weirdoes in the two years I worked in the library than all the time I worked at McDonalds, the Wal-Mart and in a bar at home together."

"Hard to picture," Logan said, grinning. "I'd say bookworms can't be that bad."

"Well, you forget all the nerds. But if you don't believe me, go ahead and check yourself. If I'll lie, my pulse would quicken after all," she challenged him.

Raising an eyebrow, Logan looked at her. "And how am I supposed to do that? Holding your wrist? I always sucked at taking someone's pulse in the first aide classes," he asked her, amused.

Her eyes cast down and she blushed a little. "Well, there's another spot you could check the pulse," she told him hesitantly.

Startled at her forwardness, Logan stared at her for a moment. Boy, apparently those sayings about calm waters that run deep was really true. First his Ace, now this shy librarian who had just openly invited him to kiss her neck. If he had known that, he would have gone for such girls much earlier on. Too bad that it was kind of too late...

No! No, damn it!

Stubbornly, he pushed his thoughts away and leaned forward, gently pressing his lips over the spot under which he could feel her pulse flutter. "You mean here?" he whispered gently into her ear.

"Yeah, just there," she answered quietly, breathlessly.

Grinning, Logan drew back. "Hmm, perhaps we can do this lie detector test later on - at a more private place?" he suggested, his eyes gazing into her dark eyes.

"Perhaps," she whispered, looking down.

Nodding, Logan looked away, content. See, everything's still normal, the same old game, he reminded himself, proudly. Here he was, dating and having a great time. That's why he was so keen on being casual. If he and Ace had been together, he wouldn't have asked Meg out and found out what a nice, entertaining girl she was. Okay, perhaps not as nice and entertaining as his Ace, but still. Lunch so far had gone surprisingly well and he had really enjoyed himself so far.

At that moment, Logan's eyes fell on an all too familiar figure, across the street, walking briskly away and he froze.

No.

Oh no.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, NO!

His heart, after having stopped for several moments, started to beat fast and rapidly, as his eyes were glued to the back of his Ace. She hadn't seen him, hadn't she? She hadn't seen him, out with another girl, hadn't she? She couldn't have seen him!

A tree blocked his sight of her and only then grew he away of the woman trailing behind his Ace. Shit. Her mother. And judging by the glare she sent over her shoulder, undoubtedly into his direction, Rory _had_ seen him. Rory and her mother. And at least her mother didn't seem pleased about it at all.

Cold sweat broke out and suddenly, Logan felt like having been hit by a brick while already having caught a food poisoning.

Shit, shit, shit!

What the hell was Rory doing here with her mother anyway? Wasn't she supposed to still be in Stars Hollow? Wait no, Rory had mentioned she'd have to work over the weekend. So why wasn't she working but shopping now? And why the hell had they had to run into each other?

Not that he had been doing something wrong. They had agreed to be casual, damn it. He had every right to be here on a date with another girl. Even if it was more an apology lunch than an actual date. Not that it mattered. In his experience, girls may be okay being casual - but they never like to see him actually on a date with someone else. And Rory...

Fuck.

"Logan? Logan!"

Dimly, he grew aware that Meg was calling his name, frowning.

His heart still beating frantically, he ripped his gaze away from the direction, the two Gilmore women had vanished into, to look at her, suddenly having to suppress the urge to jump up and leave, follow his Ace, trying to explain himself.

But what exactly should he explain? He had done nothing wrong, nothing they hadn't agreed on. So what if she had seen him? It was unfortunate, but there was no need to feel like being caught with the hand in the pot. He had done nothing wrong after all, nothing at all.

Then why the hell did he feel so guilty right now?

"Hey! Is everything okay?"

And could that girl finally shut the hell up? He was trying to figure something out here, damn it!

"Logan?"

He forced himself to smile at Meg. "Yeah, everything's okay." God, he hoped everything was really okay. "Uh, I just... need to get back, you know? My best friend's birthday's tomorrow and there's still a lot to organize."

"Oh!" Her face fell a little. "Uh, sure, no problem. Throwing a big party?"

He nodded, still smiling a strained smile. "Something like that. We're going away for the weekend, leaving this afternoon..."

"Hey, it's okay. I need to get back to the library anyway," Meg reassured him with a smile.

Not that Logan remembered to have apologized for something. He didn't owe her an apology. Or perhaps he did. He wanted nothing else than to get away from her right now. Despite having had had fun with her, despite liking her, thinking she was truly a nice girl.

But if he had to choose between her and Rory... she stood no chance. If he still stood a chance with his Ace after she had seen him with Meg. Fuck. He needed to talk to her, start damage control as soon as possible, before she could start imagining the worst things.

Impatient, he threw a bill onto the table, fully knowing that it was way too much, but he hadn't had it smaller and not the slightest intention to wait until he had gotten the waiter's attention and then wait again until the waiter would bring the bill.

"Come on, I'll walk you back to the library," Logan told Meg, motioning for her to get up.

She glanced at the fifty dollars bill and her eyebrows rose, but she did get up and quietly, they walked away. After a few feet though, she stopped and turned to him. "You know what? It's really not necessary for you to bring me back. It's obvious you're in a hurry. And it's really okay."

He frowned. Okay, yeah, he wanted to get away from her, but this didn't feel right. "Are you sure? Because it's really not that much of an..."

"Logan, relax. It's really okay, believe me. In fact, I'd prefer to separate now and not feel like I'm keeping you away form your - plans," she assured, smiling.

"Okay..." he relented, not that he had put up a real fight. And he couldn't help but think that if this had been his Ace, he'd have never allowed her to walk back alone. But this wasn't his Ace. Instead, this was the girl his Ace had seen him with, out on a date. And though this hadn't been Meg's fault at all... he just couldn't bring himself to not resent her a little for that. No, it really was better if they went their separate ways as soon as possible. "So... this had been fun," he instead continued. "Thanks for coming out with me."

"Well, thanks for buying me lunch," she nodded. For a moment, she looked at him, then smiled. "I really should get back now. But Logan?"

"Hmm?" he asked, glad that this rather abrupt parting went on so well.

Her smile was still in place, but right now, it looked kind of strained. "I don't know what exactly is going on between you and Rory Gilmore - but it's rather obvious just how much she means to you. Perhaps, you should tell her that. I'm sure she'd be okay to move past the - casual friends part."

Thus said, she gave a last rueful smile and then turned around to quickly head away, leaving Logan to stare after her, open-mouthed.

_What?_

* * *

It was a good two hours later that Logan walked into the newsroom, looking for Rory. Two very long, very confusing hours. Meg's parting comment had thrown him, wondering whatever may have triggered it. Okay, so him wanting to leave had come pretty abruptly, but he doubted that she had seen Rory across the street as well. And before that, it had gone well, hadn't it? So why that comment? What had he done or rather said not done that made her believe that he wanted more from Ace than just their friendship and their... uh... their benefits?

And then there was his Ace. Why was he so bothered at the thought of her having seen him with another girl? Why was he so worried about her reaction? Their casual dating had been her idea after all so she had no right to be offended or hurt or anything else. And hell, why did he feel as if he had done something wrong at all? Why was he so adamant, almost panicked, to find Ace and see to it that everything was okay between them?

This wasn't the way he was supposed to feel like. The most he should feel was slight regret at the misfortune of her having seen him with Meg, not this unexplainable panic and that omnipotent urge to explain himself to her. There was nothing to explain, for Heaven's sake.

Yet, here he was, slowly walking over to her desk, hesitant to approach her like he had only been two times before. The one time he had gone to talk to her after his prank and then after he had had to ditch her for that party his parents had thrown for Seymour Hersh. But he needed to talk with her, try to gauge how she was feeling after that stupid run-in.

See if everything was okay between them.

God, he hoped so!

She was furiously typing away on the computer when he approached her, and even though she had briefly glanced at him she quickly had turned back to the screen, giving no sign of acknowledging him and he wasn't sure if he should take this as a bad sign that she was mad at him or simply as her being engrossed in what she was writing. With her, both was possible.

"Now, that's a look of great determination," he finally commented, having nothing better to say than that. He really wasn't quite sure how to approach the topic. He never before had had to explain himself to a girl for having met another girl. Not that he needed to do that now, he reminded himself firmly.

"Yes, I'm determined to finish this piece before my caffeine buzz wears off and I have about thirty seconds left," she replied, barely glancing at him, her fingers flying over the keyboard.

It felt like a brush off, but then again, it could be just as she had said and she was determined to finish whatever she was writing.

Ugh... this didn't get him anywhere! Obviously, if he wanted to hear if she had a problem with having seen him out with another girl, he'd have to approach this directly.

Fuck. And how was he supposed to do that?

Warily, he seated himself halfway onto the corner of her desk.

"Sooo..." he started, hesitantly.

"So...?" she asked, her eyes still glued to the monitor in front of her, not stopping her typing.

"Did I see you on Sate Street with..." his cautious voice trailed off, unsure of how to name it.

Her answer was short and ungiving. "Yeah."

"Right," he stated, growing more and more nervous. He never had seen her acting like this, so completely - detached. Shit, did that mean she was mad after all? "So you saw me on State Street with..." again, his voice trailed off. Damn it, what was it with this stupid loss of words with him?

"Yep." Again short, again only glancing at him briefly, still typing away.

God, this was frustrating!

"So..." he repeated himself tentatively.

"So...?" she asked once again.

"Are we still good?" It blurted out of him, unable to bear this suspense any longer. This awkwardness.

"Absolutely."

Her short, unfazed answer and her dismissive glance threw him. That, he hadn't expected and his eyebrows shot up. "Really?"

Finally, she looked at him as more as just a glance - but her gaze and face were totally ungiving of her thoughts or emotions. "Logan, we both agreed. No strings attached. Remember?"

If _he_ remembered? Was she joking? Of course he remembered. But this didn't mean that she was really okay with it after having seen it first hand. Was she really okay with this? "I remember," he assured her. "I was just checking to see how well you remember."

Eyes glued to the screen in front of her again, she gave a small nod. "I remember perfectly."

"Okay, that's good to hear," Logan said, slowly, not quite convinced. But she really seemed okay with it.

Why was she okay with this? She was supposed to be irritated or at least a bit annoyed! She was supposed to be mad about having caught him on a date with another girl. That was only natural. Heaven knew he'd be not so okay if _he_ had caught _her_ on a date with another guy. Not that it would be a real problem, they were casual after all, but he didn't have to see it and like it. Why the hell was she so fucking cool about this? And why the fuck was he suddenly getting mad because she wasn't mad?

Ugh... he needed to stop thinking! Especially so irrationally. "So..." he started once again, unsure though what to say.

She finished typing and finally looked up to really look at him. "Oh, we're not going to do the 'so'-thing again, are we?"

For the first time, Rory sounded like his Ace and involuntarily, he had to smile. "No, promise. No more 'so's," he assured, shaking his head. "Would you take an 'um'?"

Her lips curled up. "Depends. Where's it leading?"

"Um..." Good question, actually. Logan had no idea. Then again... He hadn't talked to her since yesterday morning and with all the birthday plans for this weekend, he wouldn't have another chance till at least Monday. He had missed her. And would miss her. Especially on Finn's party. Damn Finn and Colin for forcing him to not ask Ace to the party. "Are you busy, or do you feel like grabbing a cup of coffee?" he finally asked, pretty sure she wouldn't say no to coffee. That would be against her rules and she so loved to go by the rules. Besides, this way he could see if she really was as okay as she seemed to be.

Unfortunately, he wasn't so sure what he wanted her to be: Be okay with it, respecting their agreement and show him that this was really a mutual wish for freedom - of for her not to be okay with it, meaning that this, whatever was going on between them, was as important to her as it was to him.

Talk about confusing.

"Why, do you have a master key to a Starbuck's or something?"

Her question brought him out of his reverie. "Nah, just thought we'd walk in and pay," he answered, amused. God, he loved her wit.

"Wow. Old School. Sure, let's go," she said with a slight nod and saved her writing with the pressure of the return key.

Feeling immensely relieved by her agreement, he nodded. "Okay, let's go," he repeated and got up, walking away as she stood up.

Looked like he really had been lucky so far and she really wasn't mad.

He caught her staring at her screen momentarily, taking a deep breath, her eyes downcast and he frowned.

Or, she was a way better actress than he would have given it to her.

* * *

Two hours later and he still couldn't tell if everything was okay between them. She acted normal. Her eating habits were their usual unbelievable self. Their talks were normal, venturing from discussing her article, to the situation in Iraq and moving over to the advantages of pink band aid, covering also a short trip to the ever interesting world of movies and TV shows. Her coffee level was normal, though he did wonder a bit at her first two choices, a latte macchiato, remembering well that this was the coffee she had treated him to when he had had that fight with Colin before the party with Hersh, knowing that she preferred this one to cure herself from a fight.

But she seemed normal and truly okay with the fact that he had gone out on a date with some other girl.

And the longer he thought about it, the less he was relieved and the more he grew irritated about that and for a change he didn't bother about the reasons behind that. He just knew that she should be bothered, damn it.

Not that he was as suicidal as to tell her that – or mention the incident in any ways.

Yet – and perhaps that was why he wasn't showing her his irritation – he felt that there was something slightly off. He couldn't name it, had no idea what was off, everything did seem normal after all, but he could tell there was. Giving him the tiny hope that perhaps, she was a bit bothered about this after all. Okay, it was unlikely. His Ace was many things, but being a good liar was not one of them. She wore her expressions on her sleeve, mostly. He couldn't always identify them, but they were there anyway.

So perhaps this really was just wishful thinking of his part.

But then, why would he wish for her to be upset?

A thought he instantly pushed away and refused to further dwell on it, whenever it came up – which was with an annoyingly increasing amount of times.

Finally, he checked his watch and sighed, looking back at Rory, sipping her seventh coffee, a mocca latte this time. "Mind if we head back? I'm meeting Colin and Finn in an hour and still need to pack."

"Pack? Another Life and Death Brigade shinding?" Ace asked, curiously.

For a moment he was confused until he remembered that after all these months, she still hadn't joined another LDB shinding – because each time, she was occupied otherwise and he hadn't even bothered to give her the invitation, knowing ahead that she couldn't participate – and so had no means to know when their meetings were scheduled.

He shook his head and waved the waiter down for the bill. "Nah. We're just heading out to Chicago to go participate on a murder hunt this night."

Her eyes lit up as she leaned forward. "One of those costumed ones, sending you all over Chicago's most known murder sites?" she wanted to know. "Oh, you've got to tell me how it was. Mom and I wanted to make one of those like forever, but we just never made it. Well, first I was too young, then it was too expensive, not that we could have afforded it before and now we're both just too busy all the time with her having the Dragon Fly finally up and running and me having to study so much. Are you going to be costumed? Will you impersonate famous murderers and serial killers of Chicago? Or the guys that brought them down?"

Logan had to laugh. "Whoa, lay back with the bombarding here, Ace. If I'd known you'd be interested in it I'd have arranged for you to come as well." He shook his head. "Though I'm a bit surprised you actually are interested in such things."

"Are you kidding? Gross crime stories, centuries and decades old mysteries, a vital part in Chicago's history and it all so macabre it just has to be funny and great as hell… What's there not to like?" she asked back.

The waiter coming over saved Logan to say anything and he paid the bill. Once the waiter had left, they stood up and Logan helped Rory into her jacket, leading her out of the little coffee shop. Slipping an arm around her waist, he pulled her into his side and they started to walk back toward the school grounds, it having become such a natural act that he did it automatically.

"I tell you what: if it's going to be good I'll take you to another tour soon," he suggested, smiling, liking the prospect of that.

But his Ace ruined it by shaking her head. "Ah no, you don't need to do that. It probably would be boring a second time around and it's too expensive anyway. Besides, Mom would never forgive me if I'd make a hunt without her."

"You know, I just can't get over the fact that you do so many things with your mother and that on your own free will," Logan sighed, making a grimace. It really was a strange thing, even knowing her background.

Rory shrugged. "Like I told you before, she's my best friend. Besides, she's really cool. So cool that I'm fairly certain even Finn would forget about redheads for a while over her." She paused, frowning. "Not that he'd stood any chance. She's got Luke now after all."

"That's not a good argument, Ace," Logan told her, smirking. "Finn leers after everything with two boobs and a remotely good figure, no matter what the age, the hair color or the fact that it's a mother. Having seen your mother and knowing Finn there's no doubt he'd leer at her."

"How very sophisticated of him," Ace commented dryly, rolling her eyes. But then she glanced at him, frowning. "And please don't tell me that you had… uh… have inappropriate thoughts about my mom."

Startled, he stopped and turned incredulous eyes at her. "What?"

Her eyes darted away, avoiding to look at him while she shrugged. "Many guys do that, you know? Fawn over her. Mostly it's funny as hell. Same with women and my dad for that matter. But sometimes… it's a bit annoying."

Frowning, Logan took his time to study the faint blush and the downcast eyes of his Ace, realizing that she really was slightly worried that he… ridiculous. He smirked. "Ace, while I had my adventures with mature women and did have a good time with them, I really prefer the girls my age." His smile softened as he cupped her cheek, urging her to look at her. "And why I admit your mom's hot – I'd never want her instead of you. All I appreciate in your mother's good looks is that she apparently passed them along to you."

Her eyes widened a bit as she gazed into his eyes and he wondered what had had her so suspicious about this. "Really?" she asked, somewhat shy.

Instead of giving an answer, Logan pulled her flush against him and kissed her.

"Okay, really," she said, slightly dazed, when he released her and with a snort, Logan resumed their walking, pulling her into his side once again. "You bet," he replied sarcastically and winked at her. "Besides, after that delightful first meeting I had with your mother, I doubt she'd even give me the time of the day," he added, sardonically, causing his Ace to laugh.

"It wasn't that bad."

He eyed her disbelievingly. "Were you _there_?"

"Yeah, I believe I was," she nodded, coolly.

"Well, then you obviously suffer from temporarily memory loss, 'cause I know when I make a bad impression to a parent, believe me, and that was what I did back then." He grimaced. "And judging by the daggers she threw me this morning I think it's safe to say I even managed to make things worse."

When he realized what he had just said, he cursed himself in every language with as many names he knew, but it was too late. It was there now, in the open and God he whished he had thought before blurting out something like that, shoving her face right into the fact of his dating another girl. Shit, what the hell was wrong with him for him doing so unbelievingly stupid things? Quickly, he checked on Rory, but her face was turned away. He hadn't felt her body tense though. That was a good sign, wasn't it?

"It wasn't you, Logan. She…" her voice trailed off. "She didn't know about our agreement and so got angry for my sake," she continued a while later. "But I put her up to date, assured her that it was perfectly okay and she's cool now." She looked at him, smiling. "So your chances with her should be saved."

Usually, Logan would have been amused by her innuendo. Not this time though. He was anything than amused. "Rory…"

"Oh, look at the time!" she interrupted him, pointing at the nearby street clock. "I haven't realized it's so late already. I've got to go. I promised Paris I'd meet her in exactly thirteen minutes. You know how she is. I'm not going to be safe if I'm late. And you should go pack." She pulled away from him and turned to face him, sending him a blinding smile. "Thanks for the coffee, Logan." She stood up onto her tiptoes and gave him a quick kiss onto his cheek. "Have fun in Chicago. Remember to always keep your back covered, Huntzberger. And don't trust anyone, not even the stooges. On a murder hunt, no one's safe, betrayal always close."

And before he could say anything in return or catch her arm to stop her, she had breezed away, leaving Logan to glare after her, frustrated.

Great. Fucking great.

To say he was irritated about Rory's actions and lack of reaction would be an understatement. The more he had thought about it in the hour until he had to meet Colin and Finn, the more he convinced himself that Rory apparently really had had no problem whatsoever with having seen him with another girl and the small doubt he had had about that was just his imagination.

So she really wanted casualness? Was really okay with him dating random girls?

Fine.

She could have it. From now on, he'd go back to his old ways. Every day another girl.

Okay, so perhaps not exactly like his old ways because he perfectly planned to meet up with his Ace every other day. Just because she didn't mind him dating other girls didn't mean he was giving up on her - for that the two of them were way too good. Besides, that was what he had wanted all along, hadn't he? Seeing his Ace on a regular basis, having sex with her but not be her boyfriend, free to date as many girls as he wanted, whenever he wanted. Like today, with Meg. That had been nice. It had been good to go out with another girl again, gaining new experiences, reminding himself why he liked so much to date. Getting to know someone, be surprised by new discoveries, experiencing something new all the time. Okay, being with his Ace always was like a new experience but she was his Ace and he had come to know her fairly well. Apparently not as well as he had thought because the girl he had believed to know would have had a major problem with seeing him with other girls, no matter what they had agreed on.

There was a sharp knock on the door and Colin yelling for Logan.

Snatching up his bag, Logan walked over to the door, took a deep breath and opened his door, grinning. "Coming Colin, so will you shut it?" he told Colin, rolling his eyes at Finn who leaned against the wall behind Colin, looking excited and amused at the same time.

"Hurry up or we're going to be late!" Colin just grumbled, tapping his foot impatiently.

"Colin, it's a private jet. I doubt they're going to leave before we're on board," Logan reminded him, locking his door.

"We still have to meet the flight schedule though. We can't afford to wait until we get another green light and you know how tight the schedule is," Colin just argued, turning to lead the way out of their house.

"So we're going to fly somewhere?" Finn perked up, looking from Logan to Colin as he and Logan followed Colin.

Logan grinned at him. "Yep. Big surprise that, huh?" he asked dryly. "After all, New Haven offers so many exciting activities to meet your high birthday standards."

But Finn wasn't thrown off the fishing for clues. "Hmm, as we're having to be back by tomorrow evening and I assume you have something planned for this evening as well we can't go that far. New York's out as we wouldn't need to fly then. Washington's too boring. Same goes for Boston. Philly perhaps? Atlanta? No, Atlanta's not special enough. Chicago? Is it a city after all?"

Neither Logan nor Colin answered, having learned long ago that in order to give Finn no hints it was best to say nothing at all. The Australian could pick up on the faintest nuance in a voice when he wanted to.

"Oh come on, mates! What's it going to hurt now? We're already on our way!" Finn exclaimed, poking Logan into his side. "You really can spill the beans now!"

"But that wouldn't be as much fun," Logan responded, unfazed, moving out of Finn's reach.

"Yeah. Torturing you a bit longer is so much more satisfying," Colin agreed, looking back over his shoulder at them, grinning dirtily.

"Mean!" grumbled Finn, knowing his mates well enough to know that they weren't going to tell him anything soon and glared at his best friends who just laughed.

They left the building and promptly, Logan ran into someone. A girl, as he found out a second later, having gained back his balance. A girl he well knew. And knowing the girl and knowing that the coast had been perfectly clear before, not to mention that there was more than enough place to avoid running into someone, he doubted that the run in had been unintended. He sighed.

"Oh gosh, sorry Logan, didn't see you there!" the girl gushed, rubbing herself slightly against him as she steadied herself.

Beside him, Colin and Finn rolled their eyes and snickered.

"Hey Whitney," he sighed and stepped a tad bit away from her.

Whitney was okay. Sometimes a bit forward, like just a minute ago, but she was a tad bit more interesting than your average bimbo, one of the reasons why she was one of his more regular dating girls. Their last meeting was a while back though. Probably the reason for their 'run-in'.

"You guys heading out?" she asked, eyeing the bags in the boy's hands.

Colin, growing impatient again, gave her a nasty look. "Why ask questions when the answer is obvious?"

"Hello to you too, Colin," Whitney said sarcastically and then glanced at Finn, smiling. "Ah Finn. Can't wait for the party tomorrow. I already got the costume and it's great."

"I bet it is," Finn leered appreciating, raising an amused eyebrow at Logan though.

Growing aware of just where this was headed, Logan sighed inwardly and looked away, gazing over the campus. And promptly, his eyes fell on Rory, hurrying down one of the walks towards the library, judging from the direction and the books in her arms. He doubted she had seen him talking with Whitney this time but then, what did it matter if she had?

After all, she was 'absolutely' okay with him dating other girls, wasn't she, he thought with another burst of annoyance. Well okay. If she was as okay with this, he could as well profit from that and start right here and now with his return to his old ways. Whitney would be perfect for that. And it would prove to Colin and Finn that he wasn't as hung up on Rory as they thought him to be at the same time, all in one.

Right.

Perfect.

He turned back to Whitney, smiling, his famous Huntzberger charm firmly in place. "About that, Whitney, I was meaning to call you," he said, growing aware of how his friends stilled beside him but not giving a damn about it. "Want to come with me to the party?" he asked, winking at her suggestively.

Whitney brightened up and smiled at Logan. "I'd love to, Logan," she simply answered, but giving his suggestive wink right back at him.

His smile widened, content. "It's a date then. I'll call you tomorrow to settle the details, okay?"

"Sure," Whitney nodded, not just a bit self satisfied herself if Logan was any judge. "Well, I better go now. Have fun on your trip, guys. And you, Logan," she said, her eyes focusing on him as she stepped up to him and gave him a short, but hot kiss full of promises for tomorrow night." You, I see tomorrow," she told him, smiling, and then walked away, making sure her hips swayed with an extra-sway.

Smirking, Logan turned his gaze away to find his two best friends staring at him. Frowning and rather coldly. His grin died away. "What?" he asked defensively.

Colin glanced after Whitney, then back at Logan, his look speaking volumes. And Finn's wasn't much better either.

Growing even more defensive, Logan dared them to say anything with one single look.

Still, Colin opened his mouth to say something and Logan intensified his glare.

Colin frowned, then shook his head and closed his mouth again, turning abruptly away to stalk towards the parking lot, scowling.

Satisfied, Logan turned to Finn who still regarded him with a rather cold but speculative look. Logan held his eyes, refusing to back down. He wasn't doing anything wrong. Hell, he was actually doing right what Ace wanted him to do. Date casual.

Finally, Finn shook his head. "Idiot," he declared calmly, pronouncing it very clearly with a touch of disappointment swinging in his voice and turned away, leaving Logan to stand behind, glaring after his friends.

Grinding his teeth together, Logan balled his hands to fists and slowly followed them.

No. He wouldn't let them make him feel guilty. He had every right in this world to ask Whitney or whoever else he wanted to Finn's party or onto some other date.

After all, Rory was just _fine_ with it.

* * *

Finn's birthday party was in full mode and it looked as if it really was going to be the best party of the year. The food wasn't too salty for once, liquid was available without limit, the band was almost rocking the roof off of Rick's bar and the costumed folks were amusing themselves wonderfully.

And so was Logan. It was easy to talk to Whitney, she being smart enough to not always look stupidly at him with an 'huh'-face when he referred to something else than usual banter, the star rumors or the latest fashion but she wasn't that smart that he had always to be on his toes to come up with new topics, arguments or references. His costume as Butch Coolidge from Pulp Fiction with his black boxers, white shirt and the golden robe was unique, just as he had aimed it for and deeply appreciated by Whitney and other girls, judging from the looks he caught being thrown his way. Whitney was dressed as Beatrix Kiddo in her pregnant bride form from Kill Bill - and she wasn't the only girl having optioned for that costume by far. Though he could have told her that. There were at least three more girls that had had the same idea. Dimly, he wondered why on Earth Whitney and the other girls had chosen that outfit. Didn't they know that a costume as a pregnant woman was a bit of a major turn down? Not that it would stop him from having sex with Whitney, but really... what were they thinking?

His Ace would never have chosen that costume, he was pretty sure about that. It was too common for that. And she would have been smarter than to go as a pregnant woman.

Then again, his Ace wasn't here and that was just fine. He was amusing himself just great with Whitney, yes, he was. So what if Colin and Finn had been asses and had refused to speak to him all the way to Chicago, only starting to defrost so to speak when landing and getting into the hunt? Caught up in the exciting game, the air had soon enough cleared between them and they had had a blast, not only on the hunt in Chicago, but also the next day. Their jump had been a rush like always, lunch with Lope had been funny and comfortable, even the visit at the MOMA hadn't been that boring for Logan and Colin and the dinner at the Kakadou had been quite good. Finn had loved every second of his birthday and their last present, the tour tickets for Depeche Mode, had, like anticipated, send him into the stratosphere. Okay, so perhaps they looked deeply disapprovingly whenever either of them were glancing at him and Whitney now but he refused to let it bother him. It was their problem if they didn't like to see him with anyone else than with his Ace and frankly said, they should get used to it because after seeing how well the date with Whitney progressed, the more determined he got to date more again.

They were sitting cozily on a couch in a far corner of the bar and Logan was laughing at an anecdote Whitney was telling him of her diagnostic class when Logan saw out of the corner of his eyes yet another new couple arriving at the party and walking through the crowd. Now, that would hardly have been picked his interest but what had caught his attention were the bare legs of the girl. Legs, he'd recognize everywhere. The plastic steel ball swinging beside them already told him which character she had chosen to impersonate and still, as his eyes wandered up the legs, over her short plaid skirt, the dark blue uniform jacket and the red bow around her neck, he couldn't help but marvel at her choice, double checking if this girl with straight, long, dark hair and a pony covering her forehead was really his Ace.

Of course it was. Those startling blue eyes could only belong to her. Once again, his eyes swept over her costume, taking her in in all her naughty, dangerous schoolgirl uniform and he had to swallow because suddenly, his throat had gone dry as instant and inflaming lust flared up and raced through his body with lightening speed. Damn, she looked hot... and all he could think about was to peel her out of that uniform and let her have her way with him. He had always thought she'd have more originality in picking out her costume than the rest of them but frankly said, he was a little surprised by her choice to go as the mad Gogo Yubari from Kill Bill. Not that he complained. Not at all. God did she look hot in that uniform!

Then though he grew aware of who was standing beside her and instantly, his lust turned into cold anger.

What the fuck was she doing here with _that_ asshole?!?! What the hell was she doing here anyway for that matter? She wasn't...

She couldn't be here on a _date_ with Robert, could she?

It sure looked like it though, he thought with narrowed eyes as he watched how they moved through the crowd, Robert leering down at his Ace.

Logan barely suppressed a growl. Unable to sit still any longer, he nudged Whitney. "Let's get a drink," he suggested and stood up, pulling her up with him, never taking his eyes off Robert and his Ace. Determined, he strolled directly over to them, now joined by Colin.

Forcing himself to calm down and be casual, Logan plastered on a grin and made a big gesture of shaking Colin's hand in a totally guy way, making sure to let his muscles play. "Well, well, well, the gang's all here," he said and turned an icy glare at Robert. "Robert, good to see you," he added, his tone neutral, dismissive. If that jerk thought he'd get a rise out of him by showing up with Rory, he was wrong.

"Hello Logan," Robert greeted him back, not too friendly. But then, there never had been any love lost between Robert and Logan.

Ignoring him, his gaze heated immediately up when he turned to his Ace. "Rory, like the costume," he told her, smiling.

She smiled back at him. "I like yours too," she commented, nodding her thanks.

Remembering the girl at his side, Logan tore his eyes away from Rory to make the introductions. "This is Whitney. Whitney, Robert, Rory. You know Colin," he said, waving at each of them when saying their names.

As soon as he was through with it, his eyes flew back to Rory, catching her eyes, holding them. Dimly, he was aware that Whitney and Colin were talking about something but he didn't hear one word of what they said as he quickly got lost in the cerulean blue depths of her eyes, forgetting everyone around them than her. He felt himself smile at her and she smiled back, causing his heart to miss a beat.

Only when he grew aware of Colin leaving did he come back to reality with a rush. A reality, where he was here on the party with Whitney and Rory seemed to be here with _Robert_. That thought raced like acrid poison through him and he felt himself go cold again.

"So. Good party, huh?" he asked, trying to keep his irritation out of his voice.

Robert nodded. "Seems like it," he said and then that bastard dared to put his hand on Rory's back, sending Logan a smug smirk.

The coldness turned into boiling rage as Logan glared at the offending arm with narrowed eyes, whishing desperately he'd have Cyclop's laser beams to blast it away. His vision blurred.

"Music's cool."

Rory's comment broke through the red haze and Logan took a deep breath, his vision clearing once again. What the hell was going on with him? He had no idea but he knew that he needed to get away from Robert and that fast or he would forget himself and show that little weasel exactly what he thought about him showing up with _his_ Ace. "Very cool. Well, we're just heading over to the bar, can we get you two anything?" he asked, admittedly not offering this very seriously.

"No, we're just going to take a look around," Robert denied the offer anyway, his hand on Rory's back still in place.

Logan really wanted to have laser beams right then.

"Okay, well, catch you later," he said, more to his Ace than Robert as he turned to leave.

"Sounds good," she smiled, making Logan feel a bit better - until Robert inched closer to her to pull her into another direction, not without giving Logan one last nasty and smug grin.

Clenching his jaw, Logan headed to the bar, dragging Whitney after him. God, he needed a drink. Or two. Hell, make that an entire bottle or two.

* * *

While he sipped at his triple whiskey, Logan never let the two of them out of his eyes, scowling whenever one of the dancing people blocked his view of them.

It was torture, no doubt about that - but he still couldn't look away. He had to watch. Basically, he knew he had no right whatsoever to say anything against Rory being on a date here with Robert. That didn't stop the fury seeping more and more into him though, fueling the already boiling rage. And all that rage was directed only at Robert, that asshole. He didn't trust that jerk. And if the bastard so much as made the wrong pass towards his Ace, there was no holding back anymore. Logan already tensed as it was whenever Robert moved a bit too close to Rory for his liking. Thank God they were standing on opposites sides of a bar table right now, talking animatedly.

What had they had to talk about anyway? Robert was such an idiot, he could barely differ between English and Russian literature and his knowledge about politics was pretty much zero. He was in no way any match for that brain of his Ace - and yet she looked at the toad so fascinated that Logan almost felt like throwing up.

What the hell had she been thinking, going out with a jerk like Robert? What was she doing dating other guys anyway? She wasn't supposed to date other guys, damn it! Sure, theoretically yes, but she... she just wasn't the type to date randomly. He never had really expected her to use her privilege to date as well. And then for her to come to his best friend's birthday party, flaunting her date in front of him...

What on Earth was wrong with her?

Some barely functional rational part of him whispered to him that this was a direct reaction to the happenings on the day before, her seeing him with Meg. He was pretty sure after all that before this day, she hadn't dated someone else. Most of her free time she had spent with Logan as he very well knew. Just like he had spent every possible minute with her. So her showing up on a date the day after having seen him out on a date with another girl hardly could be a coincidence.

Perhaps this was why he strangely felt no rage whatsoever towards his Ace - merely annoyance and incredulity at her choice of a date.

No. All that rage he was feeling was only reserved for Robert. He and Robert had never liked each other, not back in grad school and not now either. Robert always had tried, usually unsuccessfully, to best Logan and when that wasn't possible, he had done his best to taunt Logan, annoy him whenever he could. But to step so low as to use Rory now in his never ending tries to top Logan, that was low even for that bastard.

Oh no, he didn't trust him at all. And so he wouldn't let them out of his eyes. And God, he almost wished that the jerk would make a wrong move - because the more time passed, the more Logan longed to beat the hell out of the asshole.

There was a slow buzz in his ear and it took him a while to identify it as Whitney nagging him.

"What?" he asked irritated, not even bothering to glance at her.

"Do you want to dance?" she ask in a whining tone.

"No," he answered shortly, narrowing his eyes when Robert's hand moved a bit too close to Rory's for Logan's liking.

"Well, I wanna dance," Whitney pouted.

Carelessly, Logan shrugged. "Nothing's stopping you."

She spluttered. "You used to be fun."

Finally, Logan tore his eyes away from his Ace and the jerk to glance at Whitney. "And you used to be not so damn annoying."

Anger flared up in her brown eyes, her face scowling. "Asshole," she hissed and stalked away.

Shrugging, Logan looked back over to the table where Rory and Robert stood - now joined by Colin as he noticed. He couldn't care less what some random girl thought about him. The only thing he cared about right now was to keep Robert away from his Ace. Deciding to need to be closer to them, preferably in hearing range, Logan moved through the room, eyes never leaving them unless some idiot got into his way. While he moved over, Finn joined them as well, only briefly though. Logan had just reached a spot around the corner from them that kept him out of their sights when he heard Robert asking Rory if she wanted something to drink both Finn and Colin gone by then.

"Nothing too strong?" was her hesitant answer.

"I'll see what I can do," Robert answered and Logan scowled. Oh, he was sure that Robert would see what he could do. Probably trying to find the most potent drink that tasted not too strong after alcohol. Or laced with some drug.

High time to get her away from that motherfucking asshole.

He just waited long enough until he saw Robert had definitely left, heading over to the bar, when he quickly honed in on his Ace. After all, he had promised to catch up later with her.

"Hey Ace. Having a good time?" he asked, smiling at her though he was pretty sure that the smile wouldn't reach his eyes.

"I am, thanks," she nodded, smiling.

So very amiable. As if everything was perfectly fine and not so fucked up the way it was.

"Good. That's good. Me too," he lied, taking a sip of his drink in order to get himself back under control. "Soo... I didn't know you knew Robert," he said, giving her a questioning look.

"I met him at the Life and Death Brigade gathering. And the poker game," she reminded him.

"Oh... Right, right," Logan remembered. Right. The poker game. Even back then Robert had leered at his Ace the whole evening. Could it be that she had really fallen for his stupid passes at her? Her, his sophisticated, smart Ace? "Well, he must have made quite an impression."

Thankfully though, his Ace shook her head. "He just asked me out, is all," she answered, smiling big.

Oh... so he had just asked her and she had said yes? She wasn't into Robert? She couldn't be. How could any girl be stupid enough to fall for that jerk, let alone his Ace?

"Sure..." he drawled as his eyes narrowed. Again, he took a swing at his whiskey. "He's kind of a jerk."

Her eyes widened and she stared at him, puzzled. "Excuse me?"

"Robert," Logan stressed. "He's kind of a jerk. Haven't you noticed he's kind of a jerk?" he wanted to know, exasperated.

"Nope," she said though, shaking her head, slightly frowning.

"Huh," Logan commented and emptied his glass. "Night's young." Not that he intended to let his Ace find out just what kind of a jerk Robert could be. Making a swift decision, he slammed the glass onto the table and grabbed her wrist. "Okay, come on."

"Where are we going? Logan!" she protested as he dragged her across the room.

Reaching a corner that would give them at least some privacy, he stopped and pressed her against the wall, facing her.

"You look great," he told her, looking deeply into her eyes and let her show just how much her costume as a mad, murdering school girl turned him on.

"Thank you," she said, obviously more than just a bit confused by his behavior.

He couldn't blame her. Logan himself was more than just a bit confused by his behavior, but then, ever since he had met this annoying, exhilarating girl, that wasn't anything new. Though tonight's intensities of his feelings and urges were startling him a bit. Speaking of which, there was one urge that couldn't wait even another second later.

He kissed her, forcefully, hungrily, urgently. At first, he felt her melt into the kiss but then she suddenly pushed him away. "Logan, stop!"

Not bothered at her interruption at all, Logan obeyed for the moment. Rory wouldn't be his Ace if she wouldn't feel uncomfortable kissing him while being on a date with someone else. But she had reciprocated at first and that was enough for the moment. "Right. So how you been?"

Startled, she gave him a look. "I've been fine."

"Good," he nodded. "Schools good?"

Now she looked at him as if he had lost it. "School's hard," she answered.

"Well, it's supposed to be hard. It's grounding you for life," he pointed out and honed in to steal another kiss from her, not less feverish than the one before.

"Making you an upstanding citizen," he murmured, briefly letting go of her lips but moving closer to her, trapping her even more against the wall before he leaned in to give her an even deeper, hotter kiss.

God, it was insane how much he wanted her right now!

This time, she hardly put up any restraint and when he released her lips once again, it was her who continued his train of reasoning. "God-fearing Christian."

Yes!

"Habitual recycler," he added and gave her another searing kiss. All her resistance gone by now, she melted into this kiss, her hands going up to bury themselves into his hair and going crazy with sudden need, Logan pressed her up against the wall, quickly loosing himself in her and losing control even faster. God, the things she did to him.

How in hell had he thought that it was ever possible that another girl could give him what she could give him?

But then she broke their kiss, pushing him a bit away from her, looking frantically at the room filled with party guests.

"We can't do this here, Logan," she worried.

And she was absolutely right. "You're right," he nodded. "Let's go."

"Go where?" she asked, perplexed.

Logan shook his head. "Your place. My Place. Let's take a train to New York, spend the night in the Plaza," he told her, impatiently, intent to get away, to get her away and to finish what they had just started.

But she stared at him unbelievingly. "We can't just leave. We have dates!" she argued.

Shit.

He had totally forgotten about that. Even briefly about the asshole she was here with. Thus was what that girl's mere kisses could do to him.

Damn.

And knowing her sense of right and wrong, he was pretty sure that it was against her rules to leave with him while being here with Robert.

Fuck.

Why had she to be here with Robert anyway? She should have been here with him, not Robert, not anyone else but him for that matter.

Growing aware of that dangerous last thought, he looked away, leaning further away from her. "I don't like this," he said, halfway laughing, glancing back at her.

Because really, this was ridiculous. He was free to do whatever he wanted. She was free to do whatever she wanted. That was what they had agreed on, what they had wanted. What he had wanted. Then why had he so much of a problem with that right now?

She frowned. "Like what?"

"You here with Robert," he answered, flatly.

"You're here with Whitney," she pointed out, incredulous.

"I know!" he said defensively. He hadn't said that it was rational. It was anything else than rational, he knew that perfectly well.

It still bothered him though and even more it bugged him that it bothered him at all.

It shouldn't bother him.

"So what's the problem?" Ace wanted to know, staring at him.

"The problem is you're here with Robert and it's bothering me and I don't like that it's bothering me," he told her straight out, not in the mood to play games.

Why the hell was this bothering him so much?

"Sorry..." she remarked, unsurely. "Do you want us to leave?"

Hell no!

"No, I want _us_ to leave," he corrected her, reaching for her. "You and me."

"I can't do that!" she protested again though.

Annoyance flared up in the break of a second. "Oh, you want to spend the rest of the night with Robert instead of me?" he wanted to know, sarcastically. She couldn't want that, could she?

But by the way she stared at him he knew immediately that he had said something wrong.

"I came here with Robert," she reminded him as if he needed a reminder of _that_.

"So dump Robert!" he told her exasperated. "I hate Robert!"

"He's _your_ friend!" Ace argued, looking disbelievingly at him.

Ha! His friend. Some friend he was, that son of a bitch.

"So what? I still hate him," Logan made clear.

Rory shook her head. "Logan," she started, more calmly. "You're the one who said..."

"I know what I said," Logan interrupted her. He was acting ridiculous, was confused as hell, so mad he thought he could burst any moment now and most of all, just wanted to take Ace away from there, somewhere private and have mindblowing sex with her after which they'd curl up together and finally sleep the sleep of the dead. He wasn't suffering any memory loss though. He knew perfectly well what he had said. And what she had said for that matter. Though it looked as if she had no problem whatsoever with going through with what she had said, whereas he....

"Okay then. I have to go. I have a date," Rory told him very clearly. "Enjoy the rest of the party," she added, turned and left, walking over past a dancing Finn and Rosemary to join Robert and Colin.

Flabbergasted, Logan stared after her.

Never in his entire life had he been left standing like that, not by everyone and certainly not by a girl. Then again, why was he surprised? First, he knew his Ace well enough that his head told him that he should never even have thought it possible that he could talk her into leaving with him. That just wasn't like her. His heart or whatever it was that was reigning his emotions right now, was angry beyond anything he had ever felt over the fact that she had chosen Robert over him. Again, his head told him that it probably was only for tonight but still...

She had chosen Robert, that fucking jerk, over him.

And the worst of it all? It probably was solely his fault that it had come to that. If he had just gone with his instinct and had invited his Ace himself, then he wouldn't be standing here now, blubbering with anger, having to watch Robert talking up his Ace. No, they would have having fun together, a great night and then, they'd leave together, spent the night with each other. Instead, there they were now, him alone and angry and she would leave with Robert and...

His hands curled into fists.

No. She wouldn't do that. She wouldn't let Robert...

His fingernails dug into his palms.

Suddenly realizing what he was doing, he tore his eyes away from them and let his head hung low, breathing deeply in and out.

Oh, for the mother of God...

This was simply absurd, he thought grimly.

Angry, he pushed away, heading straight over to the bar.

A drink. He needed a drink.

* * *

From a dark corner, Logan nursed his drink while he still kept Argus eyes on his Ace and Robert. He had thought about simply leaving but he just couldn't. Rory may believe what she wanted, but he wasn't going to leave her alone with the jerk. He didn't bother to analyze if this was because he wanted to protect Rory or if he just wanted to make sure that Robert, that asshole, didn't try anything with his Ace.

So far the two of them mostly had watched the other guests or some of the show parts, talking a lot. His Ace still sipped at the first drink Robert had brought her. Perhaps she didn't like it. Perhaps she was smart enough to not just accept any drink of a guy she barely knew. Whatever it was, he was glad for it. He was also glad that Colin had been with them almost all the time, only having left them once when he had needed to go to the john.

Suddenly though, he saw Robert leading Rory out to the dance floor and Logan narrowed his eyes, tensing. Dancing? That bastard dared to go dance with his Ace? For now it was something fast he didn't recognize but Robert better hoped there wasn't going to follow a slow dance. At the pure thought of his Ace slow dancing with the jerk he saw red - or turned green. Not quite sure about that.

And promptly, as if his thoughts had conjured it up, the fast beat turned to a slow, sensual rhythm. He could see his Ace hesitating, looking unsurely around and that somewhat consoled him - but then Robert yanked her into his arms, slipping them around her waist, his fishy paws moving dangerously low.

Something snapped in Logan at that and his vision cleared to narrow on his target as he pushed away from the wall he had leaned on and brooded. Quickly, he headed towards the son of a bitch pawing his girl, his blood boiling, rushing in his ears.

_He was going to kill that bastard!_

Perhaps six feet away from them, something suddenly blocked his way though and before he knew it, an iron grip closed around his arms and he was yanked away.

He gurgled a protest or perhaps even an outraged outcry as he was dragged away from his target and he struggled to get free.

No such luck though. All it did was that the grip on his arms tightened even more and only lifted as he was thrown into a dark room. The door banged close loudly and then, light flared up to reveal Colin and Finn, both of them glaring at him.

"Not on my party, mate," Finn said quietly, firmly.

"What the hell are you doing?" Logan spat, furious, glaring right back at them.

"What _we_ are doing? What do you think _you_ are doing?" Colin wanted to know, frowning. "Have you any idea what you were just about to do?"

Logan's eyes turned to slits, burning with fury. "Oh yeah, I know exactly what I was about to do. Dealing with that motherfucking asshole once and for all," he hissed, moving forward. "Now let me out of here! I'm going to kill that little bastard!"

But Finn pushed him back. "Don't think so, mate. Not on my party," he repeated, daring Logan to try to get past them again.

But Logan was a long way past of caring about that and determined, he strolled forward again. "The hell I will! What is your problem anyway?" he snarled. "I thought you hated Robert."

Once again, Finn pushed him back, this time moving to root himself in front of Logan, his eyes warning his friend to not try to get past him again. "I do. He's an idiot which him showing up with Reporter Girl here proves once again. But as much as I regret to not being able to see you beat the hell out of him finally, you can't, Logan. The only one who can send the weasel back to the shithole he crawled out of is our love and I'm sorry to say that it doesn't look like she's inclined to do that, unfortunately." He sighed and shook his head sadly. "However, if you storm out there and beat the living shit out of him, then I can guarantee you it's you she's going to send to hell and this time, she won't take your sorry ass back. So do yourself a favor, cool down and leave before you do something you'll definitely regret, probably for the rest of your life."

"The hell I will!" Logan yelled, pointing outwards. "Have you seen what that asshole is doing? Not enough that the jerk had the audacity to go ask _my_ Ace out on a date and then bring her here to rub it into my face, not enough that he uses her to get back at me, no, now that little piece of shit is touching her. You think I stand idly by and watch him feel up my girl?!?! No fucking way! And now let me out of here before I fight my way out!"

"No Logan. We won't. And sure, go ahead and try to fight us. You're drunk. And you're beyond any reason. You'll have no chance, Logan, and if you'd had just a little bit of sense left in you, you'd know that," Colin spoke quietly, stepping forward, coming shoulder to shoulder with Finn, forming an effective wall to hinder Logan to get past them. "And you know, you don't have to be so damn arrogant. Robert happens to really like Rory. He fancies her, has ever since the Life and Death event she had attended. That seeing him together with Rory riles you up is only an added bonus."

"Oh I see. I must have overlooked his smugness then," Logan haunted, narrowing his eyes at Colin. "Wait, was this your idea? Did you plant that idea in his head to ask my Ace out?" he demanded to know, suspiciously. He wouldn't put it past Colin to have done something like that, especially considering his attitude towards him and Rory lately.

But Colin snorted and rolled his eyes. "Okay, now you've really lost it there, Logan."

Logan shook his head. "It doesn't matter anyway. That bastard has gone too far this time and he needs to be told that. I'll show him once and for all not to mess with me. I'll teach him to stay the fuck away from my girl!" he hissed, his eyes going towards the door, visualizing Robert's groping hands on his Ace. Baring his teeth, Logan tried once again to get past Finn and Colin. Imperative word was _tried_.

"That's where you're wrong, mate," Finn said quietly, putting a hand onto Logan's shoulder, forcing him to look at Finn. "In case you have forgotten: She. Is. _Not_. _Your_. Girl. You didn't want that, remember? You wanted your oh so precious freedom to fuck everything with two legs and boobs. You wanted to have your pick, not being tied down to just one girl. You didn't want to commit, not even to Reporter Girl." His green eyes bored into Logan's. "Fine. You got what you wanted. You're able to do the dirty deed with our love and you still can date whoever you want. But so can she, Logan. You wanted friends with benefit? You have it, but you seem to have forgotten that this goes both ways. She's free to date whoever she wants and tonight, that is Robert and not you. _He_ asked her out for tonight and not you. And if she wants to - though I very much doubt that - _he's_ the one sharing her bed tonight and not you. And if she doesn't - what I think is more likely - _she_'s the only one who can tell him no, stop him from going too far. Which she will do if necessary, believe me. She's a big girl. But it's her call, not anyone else's, not mine or Colin's and not even _yours_."

"Finn's right. And if you can't handle that, you should have thought about that before. You had your chance, buddy, to make sure that Robert or anyone else would stay away from her, but you didn't, leaving them every right to ask her out, court her," Colin gave hid two bits as well. "For that matter, you still have that chance - unless you ruin it by going out there and make a scene now, sending Robert to the hospital. So you've got a problem with Robert dating Rory? So you're jealous as hell? Fine. But that's _your_ problem and not Robert's and not Rory's. Ours apparently because out of some reason we feel the need to keep an eye on you and stop you from making a complete asshole out of yourself. But not theirs. You want to do something about that? Stop being such an idiot and go to Rory, albeit tomorrow, not still tonight, and tell her that you want her exclusively. And if you're still so dense to not want that, then you better find a way to keep your jealousy in check because as long as you date randomly, she will also."

Robert momentarily forgotten, Logan stared at his friends, wide-eyed. What? "I'm not jealous," he made clear, once and for all.

It was their turn to stare at him, flabbergasted, and silence engulfed them until it was broken by Finn breaking out into loud laughter. "Oh, that's too good to be true! Here you are, having totally turned into an uncontrollable green-eyed monster and all the time you don't even know you're jealous." He laughed harder. "Oh God, that's just the best one yet! Thanks, mate. Really thanks! This one's going to make me laugh for a decade to come. Maybe even two!"

Logan took a step back and shook his head. "I'm not jealous!"

He wasn't. He couldn't be. Jealousy was not his thing. He didn't do jealousy.

Colin shook his head and sighed, though he too started to grin. "Oh yes, you are."

"No! No," Logan shook his head again, taking yet another step back. "I'm not. I'm mad at Robert, yes, but that's because he's a jerk and he's using Ace. And I don't trust the little bastard. This has nothing to do with jealousy. Because I'm not jealous. I've never been jealous in my life before and I'm not now!"

Finn calmed down a bit and sighed. "Hate to tell you this, mate, but that rage surging through your veins at seeing your Ace with someone else, that fury that has turned you into a mindless idiot not thinking straight? It's called jealousy." He eyes softened. "And no, you've never been a jealous guy, but then, never has a girl meant so much to you as Reporter Girl does." He grew serious. "You've never been in love before," he told Logan, gently.

Paling, Logan quickly backed away from them until his back hit the opposite wall, all this time shaking his head. He opened his mouth, but no tone came out.

They were crazy! First they accused him of being jealous and now that he was in love? Ridiculous! Okay, Rory meant a lot to him, no doubt about that, but love? Hell no! He wasn't that stupid.

Right.

He pierced the two lunatics with his eyes. "You - are crazy. Totally and completely gone over the edge," he declared slowly, pointing at them. Then he pushed away, made a large turn around them and went over to the door, yanking it open.

Neither Finn nor Colin tried to stop him this time and that was good so - but he felt them following him. Back at the party, he quickly scanned the dance floor. He wasn't sure what he was going to do. He still wanted to punch out the lights for Robert but most of his mad rage was gone, leaving him back in control. He wasn't quite sure what had overcome him before - but it definitely hadn't been jealousy. Not finding them on the dance floor, he looked around the entire room for them, worry starting to seep in. Where were they? Just how long had the two lunatics kept him locked in Rick's storeroom? Still not spotting them, he noticed Rosemary standing nearby though. Quickly, he moved over to her, ignoring the lunatics that followed him.

"Rosemary, have you seen Ace?" he asked, shortly.

She looked at him, raising an eyebrow. "Who?"

"Rory," Logan clarified, impatiently. "She was wearing the Gogo costume."

"Oh... She and Robert left a few minutes ago," she answered, shrugging.

"What?" Logan exclaimed, alarmed, turning towards the door instantly.

They had left? Shit!

Once again, he felt himself held back though by a hand on his shoulder. "Leave it be, Logan," Colin said quietly, but harshly. "Rory's going to be fine. I know you don't like Robert but he's not going to hurt her. And you yourself should know best that she's not going to invite him in and have sex with him," he further reasoned, urgently. "She's not that kind of a girl, you know that. Besides, she doesn't really like Robert. She's fascinated at how self-centered someone can be, but that's about all. He told her his life goal, you know?" Colin added, grinning. "She's not interested in him, so relax."

But Logan wasn't relaxed. Okay, perhaps a little, but not enough. Colin could say what he wanted, but he didn't trust Robert, not at all.

"Yeah, Robert won't get lucky tonight," Rosemary chuckled. "And from the way he looked, he knew that perfectly well. But then, no wonder. Rory hadn't taken it too well when the guy let his hands roam a bit too much."

Logan's head snapped around to gaze at Rosemary. "What?"

Finn groaned and slung an arm over Rosemary. "You know I love you, darling, but you didn't help at all right now, baby."

Rosemary ignored the Australian and grinned. "You know Robert. He tried to feel her up. Rory slapped his hands away, smiled so sweetly that it almost hurt and whispered something to him. Wish I'd know what it had been, 'cause I've never seen any guy go so pale and hastily retreat like our Robert had. Then they left and Robert barely dared to come even within arm range of Rory. It was too funny."

"And that I've missed..." Finn sighed, dramatically, before glaring over at Logan. "Thanks a lot for that, mate."

But Logan ignored him. "Was she okay?" he wanted to know from Rosemary, concerned.

She laughed. "More than okay. She looked smug as hell."

"See," Colin pointed out quietly, his hand still on Logan's shoulder. "Told you she can handle Robert herself."

"Yeah, she's a big girl, our love," Finn nodded, smiling. His eyes were serious though.

Logan looked away. Perhaps they were right. He still didn't like the thought of her having been harassed by Robert though. His gaze fell onto the dancing, partying people and suddenly, he was just tired.

"I need to get out of here," he murmured. Catching the suspicious and slightly alarmed looks of his friends, he grimaced. "Relax, I'm not going to storm after them and rip off Robert's head," he reassured them grudgingly. Though the image of that was promising.

They didn't look convinced.

He sighed. "Really not. Never, ever, not even on my death bed," he promised, rolling his eyes, using the old oath they had come up with when they had been five years old.

Now they looked convinced. They only used that one when being dead serious.

"Okay. It's getting late anyway and I'm growing tired as well," Colin nodded and shrugged. "Probably will turn in soon as well."

Logan shot him a warning glance. He wanted to be alone. He needed to be alone. He needed to sort through what exactly had happened that night. He needed to think. And he didn't want anyone with him right now.

Colin seemed to get that as he made no sign to follow him. After three steps, Logan turned back to him though. "I don't care if he's your friend or not. I don't want to see him anymore, unless it's unavoidable. So keep him away from me, Colin," he told Colin, flatly, dead serious, the warning swinging underneath his words loud and clearly.

Colin's eyes widened and he opened his mouth. Finn shook his head, giving him a look. Colin closed his mouth, rather said clenched his jaw. But in the end, he gave a tight nod, glaring at Logan.

Good.

Without looking back, Logan left.

* * *

Logan stood in the shadows of the same tree he had stood before, watching Rory's window. The first time with Finn, when he had brought her the invitation to the Life and Death Brigade gathering, the second the night they first had slept with each other.

He hadn't broken his oath to Finn and Colin. He hadn't stormed after Rory and Robert. But already then he had known that he would come check if she had gotten home okay. The light shining through the blinds and the silhouette of her figure occasionally moving behind her calmed his worries though.

Briefly, he had thought of knocking against her window, like on that first night they had had together, all those nights before. But remembering the last conversation they had, he thought better of it. Besides, he still wanted to be alone.

Tonight...

Tonight something had happened with him that he couldn't understand. And didn't like at all. While he loved to live the life like he did at the moment, loved the unexpected, knowing only few boundaries... He also liked to be in control of this life. Little that had happened tonight had been under his control. Definitely not Robert showing up with Rory on Finn's party. But not even his own reactions to that. He hadn't had himself under control.

It wasn't the first time this had happened with Rory around but so far, losing control mostly had been fun - exhilarating. Then again, mostly that had had only happened while kissing Rory or during sex with her and a man hardly can complain when he looses control there - as long as it was in a good way. But tonight, tonight it hadn't been fun.

Logan wasn't sure what he would have done if Finn and Colin hadn't stopped him. That thought scared him a little. The worst part though was that he was still, even now after having cooled down considerably, annoyed that his friends had stopped him from teaching Robert a lesson.

And then there were his friend's words and accusations. He knew they were partly right. His Ace showing up with Robert was mostly his fault. He should have simply asked her to the party and not let himself getting so irritated by Finn and Colin that he felt compelled to prove a point to them. And he should have made clearer to Robert to stay the hell away from what was his.

Because no matter what, Robert had had no right to ask Rory out. The jerk had known that Logan was seeing her and even though Robert may never have been a friend, they knew each other long and well enough to not go after the other's girl.

But Finn and Colin had still been wrong with other things. He hadn't been jealous. Angry, yes, very angry, but that had been because of Robert and what that slimball had dared to do, going behind his back like that. And he'd make sure to let Robert know about what he had thought of that.

But it wasn't jealousy. Because he very definitely wasn't in love with Rory.

He loved spending time with her. He loved talking to her. And God, he loved having sex with her. But he wasn't _in_ love with her.

And yeah, he may not like seeing her with other guys, but heck, that was only natural. Okay, so perhaps she was a different story in that aspect - though, if he really thought about their last conversation, she hadn't seemed that pleased about him being there with Whitney either - but fact was that he was a guy and he still had a lot to discover with his Ace. He wasn't finished with her yet by far and every time she went out with someone else would take away time from him.

That didn't mean though that he wanted to go exclusive with her. He still wasn't made to be a boyfriend, nothing had changed about that.

What he needed to do though was to find a way to stop her from going out on more dates. After all, before this night, she hadn't felt the urge to date anyone but him, had she? Nor had he for that matter. So there was no reason why they couldn't go back to the way things had worked before this weekend.

The light in her window went out, telling him that she had settled into her soft bed now and for a moment, he was overwhelmed with the wish to be in there with her, his Ace firmly in his arms.

Oh yeah, he definitely needed to hinder her from going out with someone else than him.

And he already had an idea how he could achieve that.

Yes, that was what he was going to do, he thought with a last glance at her window as he stepped away from the tree and briskly walked over to his own dorm.

* * *

It wasn't quite pure coincidence that Logan met Robert before their one and only class they had together. Tax law. It probably was the only class that Robert visited regularly. Considering his greed, that wasn't too surprising.

Logan didn't like the class and contrary to Robert only went often enough to keep track of the teaching subjects and not fall behind. Professor Peterson was boring and what he lectured in his class, Logan could as well read at home, without having to suffer through an hour filled with a monotone monologue about the tax system, the laws around it and the boundaries set by those laws. If he could, he'd ditch the class but as the future CEO of the Huntzberger Media Cooperation he was expected to take this class - as had been made very clear by both his father and his grandfather.

Actually, he had only attended a class right before spring break so the next one could have waited another couple of weeks.

But he happened to know that Robert liked to suck up to Professor Peterson by having offered his help for the preparations of the class, hoping to get a better grade this way. Knowing Peterson, that probably even worked. So Robert was usually found in the classroom at least twenty minutes before the class started, preparing the slide show, handing out additional reading material, these sorts of things.

And so he did that Monday, Logan noted with satisfaction and went inside the classroom, carefully closing the door behind him. He dropped his bag onto the next best place and headed down the stairs.

"Finster!" he bellowed and Robert looked up from the computer he had been working on.

Upon seeing Logan, he frowned. "What are you doing here, Huntzberger? Got lost?"

"Ha, ha, very funny, Robert. You've been better," Logan replied wryly. "What's the matter? Not gotten lucky last night?"

Robert through him an annoyed look, but then smirked. "What about you? I heard Whitney didn't wake up in her dorm - nor was it yours either though."

Logan smiled deridingly. Robert needed to get up earlier if he thought that that last comment could possible affect Logan. "Contrary to you, Robert, I have no doubts about my ability to satisfy my girls so you can spare yourself your digs. You only shovel your own grave with them."

"Hmm, really? If your girls are so satisfied, then why did Whitney leave the party with someone else?" Robert asked, raising his eyebrows. "Actually, why would Rory have said yes when I asked her out if she gets all she needs from you, hmm?" He grinned haughtily. "Perhaps you shouldn't be so sure about your abilities, or rather said, lack of them after all."

Rage started to boil deep inside Logan once again at Robert's reference to Rory but this time, he kept a tight lid on it.

He's eyes cold as ice, Logan leaned with his hands onto the desk, fixing the little bastard with a frosty glare. "I'm glad you came to bring up Rory," he started, smiling, his voice awfully pleasant. "I was meaning to have a word with you about that." In a flash, his smile dropped, leaving only a cold, firmly set mask behind that stared frostily at the jerk. "Stay away from her."

Robert swallowed, but the idiot still had the nerve to snicker. "Sorry, Huntzberger, can't do that. It's not my fault the lady finds me irresistible."

Unfazed, Logan leaned a bit closer down to Robert. "If you know what's good for you, Finster, you stay away from her. You don't want to mess with me, Robert. So don't," he warned the other guy, flatly.

The Jerk paled a bit more and swallowed again. But he still grinned at Logan, although a bit shakily. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but Rory doesn't seem like the girl to two-time. Yet, she agreed to go out with me." His eyes narrowed. "Actually, I know exactly that while you're seeing her, you two are only casual. So, Logan, I don't think you really have a right to tell me to stay away from her. Now if you'll excuse me, I have yet some preparations to make."

He stood up but that was just fine with Logan. Within seconds, he had Robert pinned to the wall, his arm against Robert's throat. "I'm going to tell you this one and only one time again, Finster, so you better listen and listen carefully. You will stay away from Rory. It doesn't matter if we're together or not, she's off limits for you." He eased his grip a bit, smiling dangerously at the little bastard. "In fact, from what I've heard, you learned yourself already last night that she's far out of your league." His grin died away and once again, he let his eyes go cold. "And Robert, if I ever hear that you touched her improperly again, then you better get onto the next plane and run far, far away from me because I promise you, you don't want me to find you then."

Swiftly, Logan released Robert out of his tight hold and turned away.

"It's been nice talking to you," he threw back over his shoulder, not bothering to look back.

There was no answer from Robert, not that Logan was surprised about that. Robert was a jerk and he often went too far, not knowing when it was better for him to stop - but he wasn't stupid. Nor was he very brave. For that, he loved his own skin too much.

He'd stay away from his Ace from now on - if his Ace had ever let him come close to her at all again after last night, something he doubted. She wasn't stupid either.

Other students started to spill in as Logan headed up the stairs. He took his seat and noted with satisfaction that Robert was still standing where he had left him.

Oh yeah, he wouldn't have to worry about that little jerk ever again.

Now, he just had to take care of any other potential idiots thinking about asking out his Ace.

* * *

"For the last time, Paris, no! You can't have my whipped cream. Nor my chocolate sauce. Nor anything else of my food that is either liquid or lickable!"

His eyebrows shaking heavenwards, Logan chuckled. "Sorry, Ace, this isn't Paris. Does this mean that I can have something of that?"

"Oh Logan! Sorry about that!" She sighed exasperated. "Paris been pestering me all day with that."

"Do I want to know?" he asked, carefully. After all, everything that involved Paris could also involve Doyle and he really had already enough unpleasant pictures of his editor he had to live with.

"Nope, definitely not, but you're unlucky enough to be the first person I can rant about her to and I fear you'll just have to suffer with me now," she told him.

"Oh please, Ace, have mercy!" he begged, grinning. "I really, really, really don't want to have another visual of her and Doyle, okay? And I assume it involves Doyle, doesn't it?"

She laughed. "Okay, but let me say this much: Yes, you've nailed it, it definitely involves Doyle. It started last night when I got back and found them on the floor between the living room and her room, covered in my maple syrup. And yes, you'd definitely want to have something of that."

He groaned, closing his eyes. "Ace, you really have to learn what showing mercy exactly means. Way too much information." He let out a deep, sad sigh. "And I'm not sure if I'll ever enjoy food sex again."

"Aww, I think you'll recover soon enough," Ace replied dryly.

"Uh no, not at all sure about that," Logan contradicted, shaking his head. "But of course you could try to cure me of my lost appetite, if you want to."

"Oh, could I now?" she drawled sarcastically.

"Yeah. Actually, as you're the one who ruined the fun of food sex for me I think it's really your duty to help me find it again," he told her, smirking.

"I'm not sure I agree with you on that point," she said, her voice playful though.

"Well, if you want we can go before a jury and let them decide," Logan offered.

"Uh... I don't think so, no," she answered, sardonically.

"In that case I fear you just have to go with my original suggestion," he finished his argumentation, smugly.

"You're unbelievable, you know that?" she asked with a sigh.

"Yes, yes I think I've heard that before," he retorted, still smiling smugly.

"No need to boast there, Huntzberger," she told him, eyeroll very present in her voice. "Well, was there an original reason you called or did you just have a sixth sense that I was having an issue with Paris still using my food for her dirty games?"

"Actually I called to see if you're free this evening to go have some dinner," Logan answered and grinned. "It's only pure but very lucky coincidence that this proves to be the perfect opportunity for you to do something about my newly acquired aversion against food combined with sex."

"We'll see about that," she said dryly. "But dinner is okay. It won't get late tonight though. I've got..."

"...an early class tomorrow, I know," Logan finished for her. "And it's okay. Believe it or not but even I have sometime to attend a class here and there and unfortunately, one of those is tomorrow morning as well."

She mockingly gasped. "Shocker."

"Yes, I think so too. Oh, as I have you already on the phone: Do you have plans for Saturday or do you think you could work me in into your busy schedule?" Logan asked.

"Hmm, let me see... No, I think I may be able work you in," she answered, laughing. "Why? Have you something special in mind?"

"You'll see," Logan said, smiling.

"Not fair!" she pouted.

"No one ever said life's fair, Ace."

"Hmpf. You know, your chances to have a special dessert tonight grow slimmer and slimmer, Huntzberger," she informed him evenly.

Logan shook his head, his grin widening. "You're a sorry loser, Ace."

"And I think they just went from slim to zero," she told him squarely.

"And can't take criticism. Someone must have awfully spoiled you," Logan detected.

"Says _you_," she emphasized and he was pretty sure she had rolled her eyes again.

"Hey, I happen to be an expert," Logan pointed out. "I certainly know spoiled when I see it."

"Okay, I've got to go," Rory finished their banter. "Is that all or do you have anything else to add to further ruin your chances for dessert tonight?"

Logan ignored that one and instead addressed another point. "Uh yeah, you do know that Thursday's already reserved for me as well, do you?"

"How do you figure that?" She sounded puzzled.

"Well, if I can't have you on Friday's which is ultimately the better evening to make something sensible then I'll get at least Thursdays," Logan made his point.

"You figure?" she mocked.

"Yeah I did. It may shock you but I actually tend to use the little grey cells from time to time," Logan answered with a nod.

"Just be careful that Finn doesn't find out about that, Hercule," Rory warned his wryly.

"I would never!" Logan assured her. "So Thursday's fine as well?"

"Yeah, it's good. Okay, I really got to go now or Professor Kensington will have my hide. You know how he is with people who are late," Rory said.

Oh yeah, Logan remembered only too well. "No problem, talk with you later, Ace. Go show off your brilliance."

"I'll try," she laughed. "Bye!"

Grinning contently, Logan shut his phone and entered a classroom for his next lecture in journalism. Everything was just going according to plan and mission 'Monopolize Ace's free time' had been successfully launched.

Oh yeah, he'd see to it that even if another guy was stupid enough to ask out his Ace, she'd have to say no because she already had plans - with him. And that this would mean that he got to spent even more time with his Ace than before - all the better. Because one of the things this last weekend had shown him was that while dating other girls definitely was fun - spending his time with his Ace still beat that by far.

* * *

TBC!

_(Author's Note: Ugh... I'm so glad this is finally over! Two and half weeks writing through strait, ending up in 82 pages... at least I'm pretty sure this has got to be some record for the longest chapter ever. But then, I knew it would be long - cause I think much is happening before during and after this particular and wonderful episode for Logan to be so adorable while being on a date with her, for getting so jealous (yes Logan, you ARE jealous you bloody idiot) and then in the ep 'But I'm A Gilmore' to finally relent and decide so swiftly to got to hell with it and become her boyfriend. He just needs another kick in the ass - hence the long chapter and the many, many additional scenes. And I'm really sorry that Logan is such a blind idiot, but hey, I didn't give out the settings for this! Okay, the next one will be long as well, though normal long I think. Thanks for continue to give me reviews - and reminders to finally get the next chapter out. I love them and they do remind me why I took on this craziness that this story is (I hit the 500 pages mark and must say, I am a little proud of that as this is the first time I do that). I hope to get out the next chapter still this year but really, I can't promise this. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it and are still alive after getting this far - and not bored out of your mind!"_


	13. The Fall Of The Tree

_(AM: Here's a quick warning ahead: This chapter contains some smut, namely right in the first scene. If you don't like that - well, then I'd suggest to skip down a bit. Though I wasn't very graphic, really not. But just for case, consider yourself warned.)_

**Chapter 13: The Fall Of The Tree**

**(To Live And Let Diorama... )**

"Logan... Logan stop! I can't concentrate here!"

Nibbling gently at Rory's earlobe, Logan did anything but stop, instead, he slung his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him. "Then I'm doing this right," he whispered into her ear, kissing her neck, right above her pulse that beat strong and a bit rushed against his tongue. Good.

"Logan seriously - I need to..."

"No," he murmured and drew back enough to turn her head so he could gaze into her eyes. "You don't. I checked, Ace. Your next paper's not due 'til next week and Doyle doesn't expect your new article until next Wednesday. So no, you do not need to work right now. You do however have to concentrate on the real important things here now," he told her and leaned down to pick up where he had left, trailing slow kisses down Rory's neck.

She had yet to put away the book she was working on but she did lean back her head, letting out a deep groan from the back of her throat. Taking that as a good sign, Logan let one of his hands slip under her pullover and stroked over the smooth skin up to the soft flesh of her breasts. With a sigh he cupped one of them and pressed against it, lightly.

She let out a small gasp but her hands still held the book. "And... And what would that be?" she asked, her voice throaty though.

He needed a second before he remembered just what she was referring to but once he did he wolf-grinned at her and took the book out of her hand to lay it face down onto her night table. Turning back to her, he used the hand that wasn't still busy to worship her womanly perfection to pull her head towards him. "Me," he whispered, roughly, and descended down for a hungry kiss, moving forward to lay her back onto her bed. He pressed his body into her, letting her feel just how much he longed for her full attention.

"Oh," she murmured against his lips and he could feel her smile. "Looks like something here really seems to need my immediate attention," she teased and moved her body to rub against the hard bulge in his pants, causing him to groan.

"Desperately," he agreed and stole another kiss from her, pushing his tongue deep into her mouth, savoring that sweet taste of her and welcoming that engulfing fire she always enticed in him and that he could feel starting to burn him from where he touched her. A fire he had started to get accustomed to, but never got enough of.

No sane, hot-blooded man could ever get enough of it, he was sure of that.

Her hands slipped under his pullover as well, lightly scratching up his back.

Though there was no sanity in what that girl did to him, he thought dimly as he shuddered at her touch.

More, he needed more, needed to be able to touch more.

Moving his hands down, he grabbed the rim of her pullover and lifted her a little in his arms so he could pull it over her head in a fast move, revealing the naked beauty of her upper body. Before he could go on and devour that beauty, she too got rid of his pullover with a hungry, determined look on her face that turned to appreciation as his naked chest came to light, causing the bulge in his pants to harden even more with a painful twist.

Off. The clothes needed to go off, all of them, he thought blindly and she obviously had had the same thought as her hands went to the fly of his pants at the same time as his moved to the button of her jeans. It didn't surprise him - they always were a perfect match in sex, rode on the same wave. Perhaps this was what made sex with his Ace so damn good. To such an overwhelming addiction. And - strangely - also so unpredictable.

Like now - he had a slow, sensual seduction in mind when he had started to distract her from her studies. But that wasn't how it would happen anymore. It was going to be fast and frenzied.

His need for her had grown too strong for it to be anything else. He wouldn't be able to hold himself back anymore, force himself to be slow and gentle.

One of her hands closed around him and with the other she pulled his head down for a hot, wet kiss.

But then, she hadn't slow and gentle in mind either.

Taking just enough time to grab a condom and roll it over himself, Logan smoothly positioned herself over her entrance as her legs slang around him and already, he pushed into her depths, a contented sigh escaping him as he felt himself slide deeper and deeper into her, her walls closing tightly around him.

So tight. She always was so tight. But always wet and ready to welcome him anyway.

She was perfect.

He brought up her upper body so he could kiss her. He always felt that need to kiss her while he rode her, moving and pushing deep into her, for their bodies to melt together as much as it was humanly possible and now was no exception. And while he drank from her his hips started to move in a rhythm of their own, faster, harder but still, Rory met every of his strokes with equal force, equal need, urging him on to go even more faster, even more harder.

A wish he complied only too happily and it didn't take long and Rory's back bowed in his arms, her mouth ripping away from his as the orgasm hit her, pushed her over, while his eyes were glued to her. He loved to kiss her and explore her body with his eyes closed, but when the orgasm overtook her he always watched because really, there existed nothing more beautiful than his Ace in the throws of an orgasm he had brought her.

Not that he ever could savor those moments of absolute beauty for long as he always followed her into orgasmic bliss soon and sure enough, already, he pushed one last time into her, as deep as he could go, and he shuddered with his release, his eyes fluttering close at the sheer force of it. Exhaling, he let his head fall down on Rory's shoulder, his body still emptying into the condom and her arms encircle him, hold him to her, gently stroking over his back. Finally, the orgasm ebbed away and they collapsed back onto her mattress, their bodies still entwined with him on top of her.

Another thing he had come to love about having sex with her. With other girls, he would always roll down from her immediately - or lift her off him. Not so with his Ace, with Rory he wanted to stay entwined with her as long and as close as possible.

Eventually he rolled off of her though, keeping her in at least one of his arms though. She cuddled against his side, resting her head onto his chest. After a while, she raised her head and gave his chest a kiss, right above his heart, before she looked up at him, grinning. "Was that enough attention for you now?"

"For now," he grinned back, stroking a curl out of her face.

Her eyebrows shot up and laughing, she pushed away from him, sitting up, "Uh-uh, Mister, no way. That's all attention you got for tonight."

"You so sure about that?" he asked with a smirk and stroked up the inside of her thigh.

Batting his hand away, she scooted farther away from him. "Absolutely. Actually, I think it's time for you to go."

His eyes widening, Logan pushed up onto his elbows. "What?"

She nodded, giving him a look. "Yep, you heard right. I'll never get this here down if you don't leave now."

Making a face, Logan sat up as well. "Ace..." he whined.

"Don't Ace me - I told you I'll have to read at least three chapters plus I have to do the premise on my next article. You said you'd behave so I let you come over, despite my better judgment. The bad boy didn't behave, so he leaves now," she nodded, looking sternly at Logan.

"Hey, I behaved!" Logan protested.

She just shot him a look. "Playing with my hair and trailing kisses up and down my neck while I try to read is not behaving. It's deliberate distraction."

"Which you needed and liked," Logan reasoned.

"Hmm, maybe. But I had my break now and am fresh and relaxed, so it's back to work. You've got what you wanted as well, we're both happy and you need to leave now," she said smiling but determined.

He studied her for a moment. He had seen her in this mood before and knew already that she probably wouldn't be talked out of studying again - what a shame. Nobody had said though that he couldn't try to negotiate a bit. "How about that: I'll let you work and go watch TV or perhaps read a little and once you're finished we resume our recent activities, hmm?"

"Nice try but you forget that we tried that already Monday and it ended up with me having done half of what I had planned to do and almost missing my first class in the morning because we were busy most of the night," Rory pointed out. "And it was all your fault."

Well - he guess he couldn't argue with that, he thought, grinning, remembering Monday. Oh yeah, Monday had been good.

"No need to look so smug, Huntzberger," Rory interrupted his fond memories with a dry voice.

Sighing, he shook his head. "You work too much, Ace," he stated.

Way too much.

"On the contrary, lately, I haven't worked quite as much as I should. Now, I don't say I regret it..."

"I would hope not," Logan nodded, indigently.

"But," she emphasized, shooting him a look to shut him up, "finals are fast approaching and that means more work again and less fun." She slapped his chest. "Which also means, no more nightly sleepovers. And in that sense, shoo! Get out of my bed."

"You can't be serious!" Logan protested, giving her his best puppy dog eyes.

Rory wasn't impressed. "Try me."

"A challenge, Ace?" Logan immediately picked up on that, wriggling his eyebrows at her.

Rolling her eyes, she chook her head. "God, you're impossible."

"Hmm, one of my best qualities," Logan complied, nodding.

"And you still have to leave now," Rory told him again, her eyes sparkling amused.

"I can't believe you throw me out!" Logan tried a different angle, laying all the hurt he could muster up into those words.

"Believe it because that's exactly what I'm doing," she replied though, deadpanned.

Giving her an annoyed look, Logan got up and stretched, fully aware that he was still very naked. Glancing at his Ace, he saw with satisfaction that she had blushed lightly.

"If you think that will change my mind - you're wrong," she said but her voice had put on a deeper tone.

Smiling, he turned to her. "Okay, but I can't go back all sticky like I am. Why don't we take a shower first?"

Rory bend down to pick up one of the big shirts she had started to keep in the lowest drawer of her night table and quickly put it on. Leaning over to grab her book, she settled against the headboard of her bed and smiled at him. "Oh, I'm going to shower - after you've left."

Realizing that apparently she really wasn't going to change her mind he sighed and picked up his clothing, dressing himself quickly. "You're an awfully hard woman, Ace," he muttered.

"Naw, just studious - which you knew all the time," she chuckled, throwing him an amused look.

He couldn't help it - he had to smile back at her. "Yeah, I guess that's right," he admitted.

It wasn't as if he really minded that much. He'd been lucky that she had let him come over in the first place. That had already needed some serious convincing. That he'd even got another dose of amazing sex was almost a small miracle. Right.

Still smiling, he grabbed his jacket, moved over to her and bend down to kiss her goodbye. "Good studying. Don't overdo it, though, Ace," he told her softly and with a last caress of her cheek straightened up again, ready to leave.

"Logan?"

Raising an eyebrow, he looked back at her. She grabbed his hand and pulled, causing him to bend back down to her. Her hand moving to the back of his head, she pulled him further down until she could kiss him. Long, deep and heated.

Breaking away from her, he smirked at her. "You really sure you want me to go?" he asked with an open leer.

Laughing, she pushed him away. "Oh yeah. Just wanted to give you a proper goodbye. See you tomorrow?" she asked, almost shyly.

Smiling warmly, Logan gave her a kiss onto her forehead. "You bet. I'll be the deviously handsome guy with two coffees at the coffee cart outside your building."

"Getting up early, Huntzberger? Are you sick?" she teased, but there was real surprise in her eyes.

He ignored the jab. "Naw, but as you pointed out, finals are fast approaching. Even I know to attend my classes now so I'd hear what they announce for them."

"I'm impressed," Rory chuckled. "See you at the coffee cart then. Remember..."

"First one has to be blacker than a black opal, I know," Logan interrupted her, rolling his eyes. Flashing her a last smile, he opened her door and slipped out of her room, hoping to avoid running into Paris.

He should have known he wouldn't be that lucky. There she was, sitting at her craft table, eyeing him with that ever present touch of disdain on her face. "Look at that: Casanova leaving early for a change. What's the matter? Got some other fuck lined up?"

"Hello to you too, Paris," Logan replied calmly, knowing better than to get into it with Rory's roommate. It was no secret to him that she despised him, ever since she had gotten wind of his agreement with Rory. Paris had never liked him much but that had pushed her to definite disapproval of him.

Strangely, it didn't even bother him that much. Paris didn't knew how it really was between him and Ace - plus, she only looked out for his Ace and Logan really couldn't blame anyone for that.

Paris glanced at Rory's closed door, then shook her head, turning back to her crafting. "You may think that hanging around her every free minute will work but I tell you, sooner or later she'll need more. And when you can't give it to her, you'll hurt her. Hope you'll be proud of you then."

"Whatever you say, Paris," Logan smirked and moved across the living room. Inwardly, he frowned though. Had Rory said something to her? Could it be that she was unhappy with their arrangement?

"Me? I'm looking forward to that moment 'cause once you've hurt my best friend, I can come and hurt _you_. And boy, am I looking forward to that," Paris said, not even bothering to look back at him.

He rolled his eyes. "Good night, Paris," he wished her and escaped the sticky living room.

Why had Rory to live with that lunatic? Over the last couple of months he had become an expert on avoiding Paris when he left Rory's, but now he had had little choice, had he? And really, what did Paris know about him and Rory? Fact was that things were great between them. The more time he spent with her, the more time he wanted to spend with her. Which was good, because his mission to monopolize his Ace's free time had been a full success so far. No other guy had even come close to his Ace for the past two weeks and Logan was just fine with that. He hadn't gone out with someone else either but he truly didn't miss it. His Ace was always good for a surprise, no date was like the other and boy, the sex with her...

He still had no words for it, just knew that he would never get enough of it, of his Ace, so amazing it was.

No, things were going great with him and Rory and Rory seemed as happy about how it was going between them as he was. Not once had she complained about anything. Not once had she mentioned that she wanted more. Paris was wrong. Nothing was going to happen. And the least he had on his mind was to hurt Rory.

That wasn't going to happen.

* * *

"Look who's here."

At Colin's dry words, Finn raised his head and looked Logan up and down. "If that isn't Logan Huntzberger. Looks like he decided to grace us with his presence for a change once again."

"Looks like it," Colin nodded, giving Logan the same once over. "What's the matter? Rory busy tonight?"

"It can't be a date though, otherwise the mate here would hardly be here, hanging out with his two best and oldest friends," Finn argued, laying his head to the side. "Knowing our love, I'd say she probably claimed to have to study and not even his famous golden tongue could convince her otherwise."

"Probably you are right, my friend. So far it has come, we are the rebound plan," Colin sighed, shaking his head sadly.

Rolling his eyes, Logan slid into the booth with his friends. "You finished now you two clowns?"

"Seriously, where is Rory tonight that you suddenly want to hang out with us again?" Colin asked, giving him a none too friendly look.

"She's at the library right now, but she probably will come by later," Logan answered simply, signaling the waitress to bring him the same as his friends were drinking. Scotch from the looks of it.

"It is even worse, my friend," Finn remarked dramatically. "We're only the fill in," he whined, dejectedly.

"It breaks my heart," Colin nodded, sniffling.

Shaking his head, Logan eyed his two best friends, not overly amused. He was tired of always having to listen to their jabs against him and his relationship with his Ace. One of the reasons why he hadn't spent as much time with them as usual lately and not just because he had been busy to monopolize Rory's time. His Ace had a big load of classes and work after all.

"I feel with you, mate, 'cause mine's right beside yours there," Finn nodded as well, letting out a deep, suffering sigh.

Thankfully finally getting his drink, Logan took a long swallow before narrowing his eyes on his friends. "What exactly is your problem, guys, huh?" he asked suddenly, having enough with their attitude towards him. "That we don't see each other as often as usual? Never had been a problem before, so why now? That I prefer to spend my time with Ace rather than you? Sorry guys, but I fear she's more sexy and my type than you two are, not to mention that it's been both of you who told me since the beginning of the year to hook it up with her so don't complain when I've just done that. So really, what _is_ your problem?"

His green eyes piercing, Finn looked around before leaning forward. "Correction mate, we told you to get _together_ with Reporter Girl, not to string her along, using her until you grow tired of her and then discard her. That's the problem, Logan, not you not spending that much time with us lately."

There was a burst of anger rushing through him at Finn's words, but Logan held it back. He didn't want to get into a fight. But he still wouldn't let this stand just like that. "I'm not stringing her along," he declared, icily.

Colin snorted. "Yeah? What else would you call it then?"

Logan glared at him. "We're having fun, Colin. We're young, at college and we enjoy it, together. Not that it's any of your business what I do with my Ace anyway."

"You made it our business when you brought Rory into our group, Logan," Colin said. "Let us befriend her."

"Colin's right. You can do with your flings whatever you want, but Reporter Girl's different. She's our friend too, one we like very much," Finn added, calmly. "And personally, I don't like one bit how you treat her."

"Nor do I," Colin agreed with a firm nod. "She deserves better, Logan, and it's not right what you are doing to that sweet girl."

"I'm not doing anything!" Logan hissed and then took a deep breath to calm himself down, shaking his head. "You two seem to forget two things here: First, Rory's a big girl with a head of her own and we're not doing anything she doesn't want to. Which leads to second, that I may remind you that _she_ has in fact been the one to suggest to have no strings between us, not the other way around. So will you two just stop it now and leave us alone?"

"_Idiot_!" Finn though just said with vigor. "What choice did she have, huh? She was falling for you but knew you well enough to know that you wouldn't agree to ever date her exclusively. Hell, you've told her just that."

"Not to mention that she had recently finished the second bad relationship in a row and probably thought why not trying out to have a bit stringless fun for a change," Colin added, his eyes as hard as Finn's.

"So okay, yeah, she suggested this harebrained arrangement between the two of you. But you know as well as us that she's just not that type of a girl," Finn took over again. "Sooner or later she'll get enough of it and what then, Logan? What will you do then, mate? Remain the boneheaded idiot you are right now and break her heart or will you finally admit to yourself and her that you're crazy about her and don't want anyone else but her?"

What was it with these people? Yesterday, Paris had ripped into him because of Rory, and now Finn and Colin. Why couldn't they just let them be? He and Rory were fine just like it was between them right now.

Finishing his drink, Logan slid out of the booth. He really had better things to do than argue with his friends about something there was nothing to argue about.

"For once and for all, I let you know that Ace and I are perfectly fine with how things are between us, so leave us alone, will you?" he asked, coldly, giving them both a warning look before turning around to leave - bumping right into Ace.

His arms automatically reaching out to steady her, Logan frowned. "Oh, hey Ace. Sorry, didn't see you there. You okay?" Had she heard anything of what he and the guys had talked about? God, he hoped not.

She smiled and shook her head. "Of course I am," she laughed and reached up, giving him a quick kiss. "Hi."

"Hey," he greeted her back softly, his arms pulling her closer to him to steal another kiss, forgetting his stupid friends and their argument for the moment being. "You're early," he stated, once his lips released hers.

"Thanks to the circumstance that you honored my 'do not disturb' order for a change I managed to work peacefully and get done earlier," she nodded but then frowned. "Were you just leaving?"

"Yeah, to come pick you up," Logan amended the truth a bit, then narrowed his eyes at her. "And what are you doing here, huh? Didn't I tell you to wait for me to pick you up?" he wanted to know, seriously displeased. He really didn't want her walking across campus in the dark alone.

But she just rolled her eyes. "Yeah you did. I on the other hand have never agreed to do just that, because it's simply ridiculous. Hi guys!" she cheered, moving past him to slid onto the bench he had just deserted, beginning to take off her scarf. "I was beginning to think you don't like me anymore. I've barely seen you two since Finn's birthday."

Shooting Logan a glance, Colin shrugged. "Sorry Rory, we were kind of busy."

"All those redheads," Finn nodded, dreamily.

"Does that mean you've given up on Rosemary already?" Rory asked, raising an eyebrow. Glancing over at Logan who still stood beside them, a slight frown appeared on her face. "What are you waiting on?"

Glancing at his friends, Logan slowly sat back down. He wasn't keen on being with them right now - but on the other hand, he _had_ asked Rory to join them and hang out for a while with them together and he could hardly tell her why he would rather just leave with her right now. He was lucky enough that apparently, she hadn't heard any of his discussion with Finn and Colin.

"Me, giving up? Never!" Finn protested but then looked more closely at Rory. "Why, did she say something to you?"

"No, she didn't say something. But I have the feeling that if you continue your - courting, then maybe, she'll finally give in," Rory told him, smiling that secret smile only women could muster up.

"Female instinct? Now, that's something I trust!" Finn exclaimed and beamed at Rory. "Thanks, love."

She shrugged. "No big deal. But you better be nice to her, Finn. I'd hate it if I'd have to teach you a lesson because you hurt one of my friends."

"Love, I'm scandalized! That you'd even think I could ever be anything else than nice to the women of my heart!" Finn protested, turning hurt puppy dog eyes onto her.

"Mhmm... That's why redheads warn every other redhead on campus to stay far away from you if they don't want to get their hearts broken," Rory nodded.

Finn frowned at her, momentarily thrown. "They do? Why? I've always been clear about my intentions. Or lack thereof."

"Perhaps, but they are girls. A girl's heart doesn't follow logic," Rory answered softly and looked around. "Where's the waitress? I'm thirsty."

"I'll go get you something, Ace," Logan offered and stood up. "What do you want?"

"Just a soda, please," she replied. "Thanks."

"No problem. You want something as well?" Logan asked his friends.

"Another round," Colin ordered, raising his half empty glass.

With a short nod, Logan moved over to the bar to order and wait for their drinks, his mind mulling about what Rory had said about a girl's heart. Was it just the guys getting at him or had he really heard a certain undertone in his Ace's voice there? Was she trying to tell him something there? Had she talked about her heart?

_No!_

No, he was not going to do this! So far, Rory had not once given any sign that she was unhappy with their arrangement. Quite the contrary though. After all, hadn't she been perfectly fine with him going out with other people? Hell, hadn't she herself been on a date with another guy?

Yeah, she had. And while she didn't seem to have a problem with spending all her free time with him, she never had questioned him about that either or had given him even the slightest impression that she wanted to change their arrangement.

Exactly. It had been nothing. Paris and Finn and Colin were just getting to him with their constant comments, that it was. Even more reason why he should spend less time with them and more with his Ace.

Right.

* * *

"Hey, Logan, is everything all right?"

Startled out of his thoughts, Logan looked down at his Ace. "What?"

She frowned. "Are you okay?"

"Sure," he quickly assured her. "Why?"

"I dunno - you just look like something's on your mind. And you've been awfully quiet the whole evening," Rory said, her eyes searching his.

"It's nothing, Ace," Logan said, squeezing her hand and looked away.

"Okay..." she slowly said but he could tell that she didn't completely buy it. It was amazing how well she had come to read him, being able to sense the mood he was in.

Apart of his sister and Finn and Colin there was no one else who could tell so easily what he was feeling. Mostly, this was a good thing as Logan was positive that that was one of the reason why the two of them fit so well together, despite all the contraries between them. But there were other times, like now, in which he wished he could fool her as easily as he would be able to fool any other girl.

For a while they walked quietly towards his dorm. While he normally preferred her room he had asked her to go to his place for this night, him not even wanting to risk running into Paris again. Rory had held no complaints to that, thankfully. But then, she seldom refused to spend the night in his dorm, only when she had to get up too early the next morning. Actually, when she knew that Doyle was coming over to stay with Paris for the night it was usually her who suggested to rather go to him than to hers. Already having seen definitely too much of Doyle than he ever wanted to see, Logan always had agreed wholeheartedly.

"Are you sure?" Rory brought him out of his thoughts again. "You know you can talk to me if you want to, don't you?" she asked, softly.

Stopping, he took in the slightly worried expression in her eyes and sighed. For a tiny moment he was tempted to ask her if she was still happy with their arrangement, the comments of Paris and his friends just not leaving his mind, despite all his efforts to ignore them. But then he thought better of it. What if her answer would be no? What if she indeed wanted strings? He just couldn't give that to her. At least he thought so. To be honest, he wasn't as absolutely certain about that anymore as he had been when he had told her just that, at her grandparent's vow-renewal. Back then, it had seemed impossible for him to date just one girl and not get bored by it. Or to have to deal with all the emotional baggage a relationship seemed to automatically include as well. But the simple truth was that he seemed to be just fine with dating only her and couldn't imagine to ever get bored of her. And there was already emotional baggage involved as well, wasn't it? Or why else was he worrying about where she stood right now while she wondered what was going on in his head that he even showed that something seemed to trouble him?

But still... dating a girl exclusively? Deal with all that couple shit? Loose all freedom he had left, having to answer to his girlfriend about his whereabouts and actions, not able to act on impulse or instinct anymore?

No.

No, that just wasn't him. There was only so little time left until college was over and he'd have to start to work, direct his life after his family's wishes. What to work, how to work, whom to associate with, whom to marry. He just wasn't ready to give up on the little freedom he had left, not even if the girl was his Ace.

Who, by the way, still waited for him to answer, he reminded himself with a mental slap to his head. Focusing back onto his Ace, offered her a weak smile. "Just thinking about a few things, Ace. And yeah, I know that. But right now I'd rather not talk about it, okay? I just want to forget about it all."

For a moment she was silent, searching his eyes and he already started to worry that he had affronted her with his refusal to let her in into his thoughts, but then she smiled. "Okay, so, well in that case," she said with a shrug and took a step closer to him. "Do you need any help with _that_?" she asked, the innuendo in her voice and twinkle in her eyes leaving no doubt about what she was hinting at.

Starting to grin, Logan let go of her hand to grab her hips, drawing her flush against his body. "Actually yeah, I could think of a thing or two that you may be able to do for me."

"Oh yeah? And what would that be?" she asked, coyly.

Playful, wasn't she? Well, let's see just how playful she was. "Ever given a guy a lap dance, Ace?" he asked, wriggling his eyebrows.

Blushing instantly, she swatted at his chest. "Logan!"

"I guess that's a no," he laughed, not surprised and moved his hands to take her properly into his arms. "You should try it though. It's quite nice and I dare say you'll like it," he whispered into her ear, not resisting the urge to place a soft kiss onto her neck, just under her earlobe. She liked being kissed there. Very much. And Heaven, he sure liked to give her that pleasure. And much more.

Moving her hands up to lay them loosely around his neck, she nuzzled his head back to give him a kiss full of promises. "We'll see about that," she said quietly, but smiling, after she broke the kiss. "One thing's for sure though: you won't get anything from me as long as we're here, let alone a lap dance."

Did he hear wrong or had she just agreed to a lap dance? Grinning widely, he gave her a quick peck onto the lips, not daring anything deeper. "Then what are we still waiting for? Come on, Ace!" he exclaimed and securing her hand in his again, hurriedly pulled her towards his dorm.

Laughing, she followed him.

* * *

"Guess where I am!"

Logan turned his head to squint at the clock on his night table and cursed himself to have picked up the phone at all. "I dunno, but I know where you'll be once I get my hands on you and that will be on your way to hell. Have you any idea what time it is?" he growled into the phone.

"Still no morning person, huh, Huntzberger?" came the unfazed reply over the phone.

"Still having no manners at all, do you, Landerson," Logan huffed, darkly.

An amused chuckle rang into his ear. "You know, you can sweet talk me all you want, it's still not going to happen. You're just not my type."

Logan would have rolled his eyes, but it was just too god damn early for that. "Thank God. You're not exactly my type either."

"Sure, go on, break my heart, crush my ego," came the immediate answer.

"Landerson, your ego's the size of China. It's indestructible," Logan pointed out dryly.

A snort. "You're one to talk."

With a sigh, Logan rolled onto his back. "Okay, Keith, there a point to your usual obnoxious self or are you just plain cruel?"

Keith laughed. "Is there ever not a point to what I'm doing?"

Logan frowned. "Karaoke," he simply reminded Keith.

"Uh-uh, there had been a point there: the point of seeing what all the haze was about karaoke. And to make laughing stocks out of you guys," Keith protested.

"The biggest laughing stock were you," Logan pointed out.

"No, I think Colin beat me by far," Keith denied. "Okay, now guess where I am already!"

Groaning, Logan closed his eyes. "Hopefully on a DAR meeting, discussing their unfaithful husbands and the ladies' resulting stark weight gains."

"You know, there's no need to be so cruel," Keith said, sounding hurt.

"Oh yeah, there is. It's freaking five fifty in the morning, Landerson!" Logan growled.

"Yeah, what is with that, Huntzberger? You getting old? The Logan I know would still be partying around town - or at least be in the middle of a nice fuck. Yet, I obviously roused you from sleep, otherwise you wouldn't be so grumpy. I'm deeply disappointed, Huntzberger. Now tell me Finn's turned in for the night as well and my world will be toppled over forever," Keith replied, surprise swinging in his voice.

"I don't know, we haven't been out together," Logan answered shortly.

"On a Friday night? One of you sick?" Keith asked back, sounding even more startled.

Making a face, Logan sat up, resigned. "Keith, why don't you just spill whatever you couldn't wait to spill until later or do call later again and let me go back to sleep?"

"Jeez, someone's awfully grumpy today. What's the matter? Not having been laid lately, Huntzberger?" Keith wanted to know, curiously.

"Keith!" Logan bellowed. "You've got thirty seconds until I hang up and unplug the phone."

"Sure, go ahead. Won't be of any use though. I'll just start pounding on your door instead then," Keith told him, unworried.

Logan paused. "What? You're here?"

"Now that's what I was trying to tell you all the time. I'm staying right in front of your door. Well actually, I'm still on the campus cause I actually have no bloody idea where your dorm is. That's why I called, ask for directions," Keith confirmed. "Now, isn't that a surprise?"

"You could say that," Logan muttered and with a groan, stood up and patted over to his window, pulling up his blinds. It was still more dark than anything, but dawn was breaking. Of course though he could see nothing. "Where are you exactly?"

"Now if I'd know that, would I have called to ask the way?" Keith asked. "There's a awfully nice path here, majesty looking buildings in the far and lots of grass and trees. That any help?"

Rolling his eyes, Logan thought for a moment. "There a crossing nearby?" he finally wanted to know.

"Dunno, but I can walk on a bit more, wait a second, yep, there it is," Keith exclaimed. "Now what?"

"What's on the signpost?"

"Ah... uh, registration and reception to the right, science center to the left..."

"Right, go left. Walk always into the direction of the science center until there's a sign that tells you to go left towards the library. Take that one until on the right, there's a red building with three stories, Berkeley written over the arch of the entrance. That's my dorm. Go around the staircase, all the way back. The last door right is mine," Logan instructed. "And don't knock too loud, my roommates asleep like all normal people."

Keith laughed. "Logan, when have we ever been normal? Where would be the fun in that?"

"I hope you get lost," grumbled Logan and hung up, Keith's laugh still ringing in his ears.

He wasn't quite sure what he should think about this surprise visit. It's been a while since he had last seen Keith, so he did look forward to see his old friend again. On the other hand, he wondered what had prompted the sudden visit. With Keith, you never quite knew. It could be he had just wanted to get away to chill out a little - or that he was running from some problem. Considering that Jewel had mentioned that her big brother wasn't on top lately, he feared it was the latter. Oh well, he'd see in a short while - that was if Keith ever found his dorm.

Knowing Keith, that wasn't necessarily a given. that guy had managed to get lost in a small town with perhaps a hundred citizens in no more than twenty-five buildings.

* * *

Yawning, Logan stirred his coffee. Keith had needed twenty minutes to find Logan's dorm and once he had shown up, Logan had suggested to move this to a nearby coffee shop that luckily had just opened.

"So... why are you here?" he asked, eyeing his old friend.

"Do I need a reason to come see my old buddy Logan?" Keith countered, offering him a lopsided grin.

"No. But you still wouldn't just drop by either, not here at Yale," Logan said with a shrug.

His grin fading, Keith leaned back in his chair and gazed into his coffee.

Waiting, Logan sipped at his coffee.

"Have you ever thought about quitting the whole family shit?"

Keith's question brought Logan to look sharply at him, a little surprised by the question. It's not something kids with his up-bringing talked about, at least not seriously. Sure, they joked about it, threatened it, whined about it - but it was almost never meant seriously. Now though, with Keith, Logan knew instantly that this was serious.

Shit. It was damn too early for things like that.

With a sigh, he sat forward a little. "Who of us haven't thought about it?" he asked back.

"Colin," Keith immediately responded. "Robert. And many others like him."

Making a face, Logan shook his head. "Colin's thought about it too, Keith. Wall Street keeps calling to him and he also dreams of an own law firm, not having to go into his father's firm. And Robert?" He scrunched up his face in disgust. "Please, the little bastard is no standard."

There appeared the ghost of a smile on Keith's face. "Still no big fan of the young Finster, huh?"

"He's an asshole, but that's nothing new," Logan said shortly, not willing to share his most recent reasons just why he couldn't stand Robert. He took a closer look at his friend. "What's going on, Keith? You want to quit the family business?"

His smile gone instantly, Keith looked away. "Didn't you just say yourself that almost all of us think about it?"

"Yeah," Logan nodded slowly. "But almost no one does it in the end in fear of loosing everything. Or because they can't see a good alternative."

Looking back at him, Keith studied him for a moment. "What is it with you?"

It was Logan's turn to look away. He wasn't sure that he wanted to answer this question but then, Keith wouldn't have come all the way from Princeton to talk to Logan if it wasn't something important. He didn't deserve avoidance. Finally, Logan shrugged. "I want journalism. It's in my blood, I'm good at it. But I'm a Huntzberger. Chances that I'll get a good job outside the family business are slim to none. And our papers _are_ some of the bests in the country. If I weren't a Huntzberger, I would definitely try to get a job in one of our papers. I hate it to have no choice, no real alternatives - but no, I'm not really planning to not take over one day," he admitted quietly. "But this is not about me, isn't it?"

Fingering with his spoon, Keith shook his head. "No," he sighed and met Logan's eyes. "It's different for me. Import/Export business is not exactly my calling. I like to travel but that's about it. I'm not that good at it as you are in journalism. I'm not really made to be a ruthless businessman, always thinking about profit, always trying to make deals that are to my benefit. Meetings bore me to no end and I really, really do not like figures and statistics."

Logan said nothing. What was there to say? It wasn't the first time that Keith complained about the job that was his destiny since his birth.

"I understand that Dad wants to keep the firm in the family, but seriously, why has is to be me?" Keith asked, desperation shining in his dark brown eyes. "Jewls is much better at it and contrary to me, she's interested in it, has the necessary bite to be successful."

"But she's not the firstborn. Plus, she's a girl," Logan stated calmly.

"Exactly," Keith nodded, agitated. "But really, what does it matter? It's so antiquated! I mean, we live in the twenty-first century for Heaven's sake! So what if I'm the firstborn? So what if Jewls is a girl? It doesn't matter!"

"You and I know that," Logan agreed. "But you know these folks. They're far behind, still cling to the old ways. It's on us to change that but until then..." he shrugged, helpless. He too couldn't stand the old fashioned opinions and minds of high society, but really, what could they do against it at the moment?

"I know," Keith said, so bitterly that Logan regarded him closely with worry. He didn't like this bitterness in his friend at all.

"What else would you want to do then?" he asked after a moment, hoping to coax Keith away from the abyss he seemed to be close to.

"You know that I took languages as a second major?" Keith asked, looking up.

Logan nodded.

"I didn't take it just because it would be practical for the job," Keith said. "I really like it."

"You always were good at it," Logan said with a smile. Keith spoke five languages fluently and three more good enough to come by well - that was the last time Logan bothered to ask how the stand was and that was a couple of years back. It was well possible that by now, new languages had been added.

"Yeah," Keith said simply, smiling. "I also took politology and diplomacy."

Quickly connecting the dots, Logan raised an eyebrow. "You thinking about becoming a diplomatic?"

Grinning, Keith nodded. "I did a joint for the United Nations last summer and also a short one over the last semester break for our embassy in Tokyo. I applied to both the UN and the Bureau Of Consular Affaires for a job after my graduation in summer." He took a deep breath. "Things look quite good for me. Actually, the bureau already told me that they'll take me."

Logan let out a low whistle. "Wow - that's not bad."

"No, it isn't," Keith agreed, smiling proudly. Then though, he lost the smile and sadness took over. "It's what I want. It's what I feel is right for me. But I haven't told my parents about it yet. They knew about the practical trainings but they've thought it's to make a few good connections for later on. Each time I try to tell them about it they start laughing, not taking anything I say serious."

Now that sounded familiar. His family was no better at listening. "Keith - do I get this right: You don't just think about not going into the family business - you actually are quitting it for real?" Logan asked, serious.

Letting out a long sigh, Keith nodded. "Yeah. That's the plan."

"That's big," Logan said, sitting back.

Keith shrugged.

Actually, big was an understatement. Like said, many talked about breaking free, but to actually do it - that was unheard of in their generation so far. It took balls, that was for sure. And it would open gates for all those who played with that idea more seriously as well, depending on Keith's success of course. But most of all, it would cause quite a scandal. No wonder Keith was so nervous.

"Garret and Olympia are not going to like this," Logan remarked darkly.

Keith let out a bark of sarcastic laughter. "Not going to like it? Man, that puts it harmless. It will be a fucking disaster."

"What do you think they'll do?" Logan asked, curiously. He knew the Landersons pretty well, but he couldn't say what they'd do.

"First? They'll try everything to change my mind and still force me to do what they want," Keith answered, sighing.

"But they won't manage to do that," Logan stated, having no doubt about that. Keith could be very stubborn. He had learnt that from his mother.

"No," Keith agreed softly and looked away. "And once I make it clear to them that they can never expect me to produce their oh so precious next heir, maybe they'll give it up all the way."

His breath stopping, Logan stared at Keith. "You're going to tell them..."

Keith nodded and he looked back at Logan, his eyes hard but also terribly sad. "Yeah. They keep parading around possibly brides for me and I just.. I can't take it anymore. My reluctance to tell my parents the truth about me already cost me one great relationship. I need to tell them before it destroys me."

"Jewel mentioned something about you and Vince breaking up and you taking it hard," Logan said carefully.

His friend smiled humorlessly. "My little sister has a big mouth."

"Who you're telling this?" Logan gave back. "But she was worried about you."

"Yeah, I know," Keith admitted quietly, avoiding Logan's eyes. "She wasn't the only one."

"Hmm - Jewel also mentioned something about Granny Landerson stripping you off your jag and Harley in poker," Logan nodded, grinning. He still enjoyed that bit extremely, despite all the circumstances.

Keith glared at him. "It looks like I'll have to have a word with my sister about her way too big mouth. And you, you better forget that one again really fast."

"Are you kidding? Not going to happen, Landerson. I'll happily tell that story for at least the next sixty years," Logan laughed, ignoring the daggers flying his way.

"Okay, sure, go ahead - but you might want to remember that I too know about a few of your most embarrassing moments in your life. So far I've been quiet about the bunny-affair in our little vacation in North Spain," Keith threatened. "But hey, maybe, next time Finn gets me drunk, I may spill my secrets."

His grin dying, Logan studied his friend, weighing the sincerity of his threat. "You wouldn't."

Keith just grinned maliciously.

Shit.

"Okay, okay, perhaps I'll find something else to joke about and leave the poker story to Jewel," he amended, resigned. No way was he going to risk the bunny-affair to get out. It really was too embarrassing.

"Wise decision," Keith nodded, still smiling evilly.

"So..." Logan picked up the conversation after a moment, taking another sip of his coffee. "When are you going to drop the bomb?"

Making a face, Keith leaned back. "I'd prefer never but as that's apparently not possible I'm thinking next weekend. The whole's family dropping in for Granny's birthday. She told me to tell them after dinner. But it drives me crazy."

"Ah... So that's why you dropped in," Logan said knowingly, finally everything making sense. He couldn't blame Keith. In his place he'd probably be a shivering bundle of nerves as well. You're not going to tell your rich and prestigious parents that you don't only plan to not take over the family business but also that you were gay everyday. Nope, he definitely wouldn't want to trade places with Keith right now.

Keith nodded. "There I was in Princeton, making myself stir-crazy by imagining the worst and scaring my roommate by pacing a labyrinth into our dorm's floor and suddenly I thought that I know just the right guys for providing me with a little distraction - or a big one."

"Finn will be honored," Logan grinned.

"I would hope so," Keith replied dryly. "So - tell me: what are the plans for this weekend?"

Logan shrugged. "Nothing concrete, but you know us. We're mostly more spur of the moment kind of guys."

Not to mention that he had avoided his best friends for the past couple of days, not in the mood to get into another dispute with them over his Ace. Rory had declared that she was going to spend the weekend home, catching up with her mom and her friends there so no, Logan had no plans for the weekend.

"Well, then what are we waiting for? Let's meet those two lackeys of yours and then hit the roof. I want to enjoy a weekend in true rich spoiled heir fashion before I'm disowned and shunned by my own parents," Keith suggested, emptying his cup.

He had said it lightly, but Logan still looked sharply at him, frowning. "You really think they're gonna do that?"

The smile Keith gave him was strained. "I dunno. I know that no matter what, Granny and Jewls are going to stand with me and support me in any way they can. That's good. But my parents? You know them. They'll be furious. To disown me and card me out is not beyond them."

No, Logan guessed it wasn't. He knew that his family would probably have no problem to do just that, would the situation be reversed. Olympia was a cold-hearted bitch in his opinion and Garrett - the guy wasn't so bad, but he was weak in character, mostly simply doing whatever his wife wanted in order to avoid stress. Not to mention that he had an on and off affair with Logan's mother. That should say enough. Still... he was sure that in their own weird way, they did love Keith and he really hoped that ultimately, they were going to accept that their firstborn and only son was gay and had no interest in the family business.

But Keith had come to him to not have to think about it for a while, not to constantly talk about it.

Right.

Logan could do that. If there was one thing he was good at, then at partying and avoiding family issues.

"Come on, let's go annoy Finn and Colin," he said, emptying his cup as well and standing up.

"See? I'm already feeling better," Keith nodded, grinning widely and standing up as well.

"I thought so," Logan grinned back.

Really - whose spirits wouldn't be lifted at that prospect?

* * *

"Ah, my friend, I think I've outdone myself this weekend," Finn sighed, grinning happily.

"Finn, that's an understatement: you went to a level that's been unheard of so far," Keith laughed, slapping the Australian onto the back.

Logan laughed and shook his head. "It's been quite some party," he acknowledged.

Technically, it had been more than just one party. Logan had lost count after eleven. Not to mention that his memories of the past two days were a bit fuzzy.

"And I can't believe that we had to break it up because of you!" Keith accused, glaring at him.

Logan shrugged. "Hey, I didn't say you all had to head back with me. I had to because I've got this stupid presentation this afternoon and if I don't show up I won't only get a bad grade but also the professor will probably call my dad cause they've known each other for years and then I'll have hell to pay. I'm not the one here who's quitting the family business."

"Wuss," Colin remarked dryly, yawning.

"Say's the guy who fell asleep in the middle of the best strip show I've ever seen," Finn snorted.

Colin crunched up his face. "Oh come on: it were guys! You dragged us to a male stripping club!"

"Of course I did, the mission was to cheer up our mate here and his interest lies with the strong gender and not the soft and round and slender one," Finn pointed out, nonchalantly. "But that it were guys and not chicks doesn't mean that the show hasn't been damn good."

"More than good," Keith said with an appreciating sigh. "Fantastic would nail it better."

"Exactly. I've got to remember that," Finn nodded and stretched, looking around. "But I've got to agree with Logan. Just because he's got a spur to be boringly responsible doesn't mean that we have to end the fun yet. I say we go catch up on some sleep, shower, redress and then hit the road again. That way, we can all continue the party."

"Hear, hear!" Keith exclaimed excitingly. Over the most part of the last couple of days he had been his usual, obnoxious self but the closer the end of the weekend came, the more broodier he had gotten.

Understandably. And normally, Logan would be the first to extend the weekend party to an all week party. Keith could really need it, that much was clear. But... Truth was that he missed his Ace. He wanted to see her again, talk to her. He had tried to call her a couple of times in his more sensible moments, but all he had gotten was her voice mail. So yeah, he really had to make that presentation. Thank Heaven he had managed to finish it Friday night, before Keith had sailed in in the early morning hours. But that was only part the reason why he had wanted to head back. It was Monday, nearly lunch time and he knew for sure that Rory was back at Yale. They hadn't had made plans for this week yet, Logan had known better than that, now that the professors had begun to prep the students for the finals in a few weeks. Besides - perhaps all the comments about him spending every free minute with his Ace had gotten a bit to Logan. Not that he had any intention to stop seeing her often - but monopolizing her time wasn't that important anymore as now she was mainly concentrating on her studies and you had to have a lot of experience in sweet-talking in order to bring her to go out more than perhaps once or maximum twice a week. He happened to have that experience and talent so he was pretty sure his Ace was safe from any would-be callers for her attention. So why not give her and himself a little more room and stop those annoying comments?

Though, if he kept missing being with her like this, he might have to think over that one again.

One thing was for sure: if he admitted now, in front of Finn and Colin that he may not go out with them just so he could see his Ace again... it didn't take a genius to figure out what they were going to say then. Lots and lots of nonsense. Thankfully, they've restrained themselves over the weekend. From the moment he had walked into their dorm with Keith in toe and they've been filled in into what was going on they had just combined their forces to cheer their friend up. But he knew them: sooner or later they were going to resume their teasing, especially when Logan delivered them such opportunities to do that.

"Perhaps. Let me first get this thing over, then we'll see. It's Monday after all, not that much good is going on on Monday," Logan said, evasively. "But what about you? Don't you have to head back to Princeton and see to it that you won't mess up your graduation?"

Keith shrugged. "It's a slow week in Princeton. Besides, it's not as if I could concentrate on class anyway so no, I don't have to head back. Continuing the party through the whole week sounds just fine with me." He got that expression people get when an idea had struck them and his whole face lit up with excitement. "Actually, I'm thinking the perfect thing to do for me would be a little trip away from all this. What do you say we all go to Cuba? I know someone there and I'm sure he'll be able to show us all the hot places in Havana."

"YES!" Finn roared, jumping onto a nearby bench and spreading his arms out wide. "That's perfect! A shame that I haven't thought of that myself." He jumped down again and gave Keith a slap onto his back that had him staggering. "Landerson, you continue like that and you may be able to become my second in command."

"A trip? Fine with me," Colin nodded with a shrug, but his eyes gleamed as well.

As one, the three turned their heads towards Logan. Suddenly a tad bit nervous, Logan offered a shrug as well. "Sure, sounds good," he said nonchalantly. But if they flew out to Cuba for the entire week - when was he going to see his Ace?

"Sounds good?" Keith repeated incredulously. "Jeez, Huntzberger, don't go so overboard with your enthusiasm. If you've got something better to do, no problem. We can party just as well without you."

"Rather someone," Colin muttered under his breath.

"What?" Keith asked, looking over at Colin with a frown.

Throwing Colin a warning glare, Logan answered for him. "Nothing. Look, I really need to get back to my dorm, look over my notes again, get ready. Keep me informed about what you decide." And he'd see what he would do then. "Later guys," he said and turned around, heading away from them with big strides, unable to stop frowning though.

He didn't get it - was he really considering to pass on a trip that promised to be the trip of the year just because he wouldn't be able to see his Ace? How ridiculous was that? Especially when you knew that you wouldn't get to see much of her anyway, due to her almost religious studying. And where the hell was this going to? If he already showed this much reluctance to leave her side for a short trip, how was he supposed to leave for that Europe trip he and the guys had planned?

It was fucking ridiculous!

What did that girl to him?

Stuffing his hands deeply into the pockets of his jacket he looked up, searching for one of the coffee carts, desperately needing something to clear the fog in his head - and stopped abruptly.

What the hell...

There was a coffee cart nearby, sure enough. One he knew pretty well. It was the same one he frequently went to lately to get himself and often also for Rory a first coffee of the day when he had spent the night over at Rory's. For it was the one just outside Branford.

Fuck!

What the hell was he doing here?

He got his answer almost immediately when a certain blue-eyed girl with dark, soft curls walked out of the building, chatting with Paris who walked beside her and laughing, her eyes sparkling amused even over the distance, leaving Logan frozen in place, drinking in her beauty.

The dull ache he had felt over the weekend broke out into a deep, almost unbearable longing and all he wanted to do was to walk over there, take his girl into his arms and give her a long, deep kiss. Preferably followed by him taking her back to her room to show her exactly just how much he had missed her over the last few days.

Fuck Cuba.

Before he could do either of that though, a heavy hand landed on his shoulder and an amused chuckle rang into his ear. "Jeez, Huntzberger, wait to have her in a room before giving her a look like that."

Logan blinked and with reluctance tore his eyes away from his Ace to glare at Keith. "What are you doing here?" he snapped, not in the mood to bicker around.

Keith raised an eyebrow. "Following you. I'm staying with you, remember?" He looked around. "I was a bit surprised when Finn and Colin headed the other way, seeing as you all live in the same house, but hey, what do I know? But that's not your house, isn't it?"

Shit. He had totally forgotten that Keith stayed over with him. Reluctantly, he looked back to Rory. She was at the coffee cart now, waiting in line, Paris no where in sight anymore. The perfect opportunity to go over and say hi. Already, Logan involuntarily took a few steps into her direction, drawn to her as if she was a magnet and he the lost needle.

But he stopped abruptly again, frowning, when a guy he didn't know stopped behind her, lining up for coffee as well and then said something to his Ace, causing her to turn around towards him. His frown deepening, Logan watched how his Ace joyfully greeted the guy, them immediately starting to talk animatedly. Obviously, she knew that guy and she seemed to like him. Perhaps not like-like - Logan knew the signs for that and there was no blushing, no shyness, no certain spark in her eyes - but she still liked that idiot while the bastard openly leered down at his Ace. Logan knew that look only too well: clearly, the asshole wanted her.

Letting out a deep growl, Logan moved forward again, his eyes narrowed onto his target. Who the fuck did that jerk think he was, trying to flirt with his girl?

Once again, a hand on his shoulder, this time applied with a bit more force, held him back though. "Wow, Logan, I don't think you really want to do that. That guy looks like he seriously works out in his free time. And he had a lot of free time," Keith said, glancing at the bastard who chatted up Rory appreciatively. "I know you hate to hear this but I don't think you'd come out as the winner, Dude."

His eyes were still narrowed on his target, but slowly, sense started to trickle back into Logan. Realizing what he was about to do, Logan jerked free of Keith and backed away, confusion filling him. Not quite chasing away the anger he felt towards that guy but enough to think more clearly again.

What the hell was wrong with him? He didn't like being so overwhelmed by anything, let alone this blind rage that had filled him when he had seen this idiot flirting with his Ace. He didn't like feeling that way, didn't like that everything in him was all tied up and it just needed a little push and he'd explode. And he didn't like either that there was something going on with him, compelling him to do things he would never have dreamed of, making him say things he never had planned to say and most of all, he didn't like the thoughts he lately had.

His eyes went back to his Ace. She was still chatting with the guy, but she had her coffee now and her full concentration was on savoring that first taste of the brew that was Rory's nectar, her ambrosia and once again, longing filled him, causing a certain lower body part of him to give a painful twitch.

And he definitely didn't like that he was so addicted to that girl, that he felt like a man having been in the desert without water after only a few days without seeing his Ace, didn't like that he couldn't get her out of his mind, couldn't think clearly anymore, without her being present in almost every single thought he had nowadays.

It shouldn't be like that. He shouldn't feel like that. He was supposed to enjoy his last few years in freedom, not spend them in such a constant turmoil. He shouldn't hesitate at the chance to go on a trip with his friends and most of all, he shouldn't feel like this.

Like he was going to kill that bastard if he even thought about laying one single finger on his Ace.

Robert had been one thing, there was bad history between them so it was only natural when he didn't want Finster to use a wonderful, sweet girl just to get back at Logan and he therefore had to do something in order to stop Robert before he seriously hurt Rory. But this guy? Logan had never seen him in his life, had no old business with him, no fight. And yet he had been more than ready to hack off his slimy, dirty fingers only a few moments ago. If Keith hadn't intervened...

Were Finn and Colin right after all? Was he really, honest to God, _jealous_? He wasn't sure, he had never known jealousy, not once in his life. And if what he felt was jealousy, then he didn't want it. He could well live without that sour, baleful feeling eating at his intestines. No, thank you very much, Sir. He couldn't need it.

No sex, as mind-blowing and earth-shattering it may be, was worth all that.

Fuck, fuck, _fuck_!

"Who is she?" Keith asked, looking curiously at Rory, then back at him, both of his eyebrows up now.

For a second, Logan let his gaze linger on his Ace, drinking the enticing sight of her in once again. It would be a while until he would have another opportunity for that. Until he'd allow himself that pleasure again. Until he managed to get himself under control and his life was normalized once again.

"No one," he finally answered shortly and turned away forcefully, walking away quickly.

Ignoring the almost painful feeling of betrayal.

God, he needed to get away from here. From her.

He glanced back at Keith who followed him slowly, frowning. "Call and see if you get one of your private jets to fly us out to Cuba this evening. With Finn onboard you should probably restock the liquor cabinet before we leave."

"So you'll come?" Keith asked, giving him a strange look.

"Of course I'll come. I wouldn't miss this trip for anything in the world. I bet it will go into the annals of history," Logan retorted. "I just need to get that stupid presentation over, then I'm ready to head out and have the time of my life."

"Okay," Keith slowly said but did got out his cell phone. Moments later he was talking to his family's company, asking for one of the private jets. The Landersons had two.

And Logan did not look back, no matter how much he wanted to.

* * *

"Man, I'm going to miss this," Keith sighed, flopping down onto Logan's couch.

Amused, Logan glanced over at him. "Who says we can't have a repetition of it? Or perhaps even yet a better time?"

"Don't think that's possible," Keith groaned, flinging an arm over his eyes. "That trip - God, what a trip that was."

Logan laughed. It sure had been.

"Besides, if Mom and Dad cut me off then I doubt that I'll be able to afford another trip like this. The small salary of a man working for his government won't allow such escapades," Keith added, eyes still closed.

"You can always search yourself a nice, rich beau. With those puppy-dog eyes and that floppy hair I'm sure you'll have one in no time. Or you could go to LA to find yourself a nice and rich actor," Logan suggested with a snort.

A pillow came flying his way and he had to duck. He groaned when the quick movement hurt his still sore head. They all had had time on the flight back to sober up, but still, if you've spent the bigger part of an entire week drunk you had to pay the price. It was Friday and they had come back to Yale sometime around lunch, immediately going to catch up on some much needed sleep. It had grown dark by the time Logan and Keith had roused from sleep, dark and late. Which wasn't that bad, the plan for tonight was anyway to stay in and get rest so Keith would be fit for the big day tomorrow.

His coming out to his parents.

Okay, perhaps they would go over to Rick's later on, just to get a drink or two.

But no more getting drunk. At least not for Keith. And frankly said, Logan too could use a break. He moved over to slouch down into one of his big chairs and reached for his cell phone on the couch table that he had left there.

No new messages.

Good. That was good.

And yet... He was almost feeling disappointed about it. How come that he could be glad that his Ace hadn't tried to call him again and at the same time also be disappointed about it? She had called him in the first few days. Not much, nothing almost stalker-like, just the few times that was normal for someone trying to reach a friend or something like that. Logan hadn't called back, had summoned all the restraint he could find in himself. Only once, after hearing the only message his Ace had left him on his voice mail, had he nearly lost the fight, his fingers already pressing speed dial. If the connection from Cuba hadn't been so slow he'd have caved for good. But so he had been lucky and come to his senses before his call had managed to connect to Connecticut.

Logan hesitated. He shouldn't do it, but - God, he missed to hear her voice so much. So, with a quick glance sideward to Keith who seemed to be back to sleeping, he quickly called up his voice mail and replayed Rory's short message.

_"Hey - Haven't seen you in a while. I guess you and the stooges are out, making the streets a very dangerous place to be. Or planning to take over the world. With you three, one can never be sure. Anyway, just wanted to see how you're doing. Oh, and I've looked it up, Huntzberger, and you were wrong, once again. There were eight presidents who died during their presidency, not just seven. You forgot William Henry Harrison, the ninth one, died only after one month, 1841. Told you you can't beat me in the history of our presidents, no matter what an ace in history you are otherwise. You owe me five bucks. Okay, I gotta go. Bye!"_

With the ghost of a smile, Logan closed his phone again and gazed out the window, sighing.

Damn it.

He missed her. There was no other way to name that dull ache he was feeling. Or why he had played this message so many times that he had lost count since she had left it him late Tuesday.

When he had left for Cuba, Monday, he had been adamant to put more distance between himself and Rory. Now - he wasn't so sure about that anymore. He wasn't sure about anything anymore. Just that he missed her like crazy and soon, he would have to cuff himself to his bed in order to stop himself to go to her.

Which told him that no matter what, something had to change. One way or another, they had to end this all fucked-up mess. And the way he saw it, there were only two options to do that: either, he broke it off with his Ace once and for all, something he was pretty sure he couldn't do anymore, even if he wanted to - or...

Or he'd suggest to Rory to try out a relationship.

Yep, so far it had come. He was so desperate and frustrated that he actually entertained the possibility to shoot all caution and reason to hell and ask a girl to be exclusive with him.

But could he do it? Be exclusive with just one girl? He never before had to be faithful and loyal to a girl. To friends of course, yeah, but never to a girl. The way he had lived so far told him that he should have trouble to do that. Then again - he hadn't take up one of the many offers he had received this week, hadn't he? Not the ones coming from cool, blond beauties, nor the ones from hot, dark, Latin spitfires. His mind was filled with blue eyes, dark brown curls, sharp with and an astonishing intelligence and apparently, no one else could do it for him at the moment.

Okay, perhaps, but what would happen in a month? Or three? Sure, he was going out with Rory for almost two months now - and yeah, in all that time, he never had slept with someone else, not even had felt a small interest in another girl. Longer than that already actually, if he wanted to be totally honest. But at one time that fire between them had to die down a bit, hadn't it? That pull she seemed to have on him had to lessen someday, right?

Perhaps, perhaps not.

Plus, there was something else he dreaded a bit: What if _she_ didn't want a relationship? She had been the one to suggest to have no strings after all. She was the one who seemed to have no problem with seeing him out on date with another girl. She was the one who sounded her usual, cheerful self when she had called, after not seeing or talking to him for five long days. His friends insisted that she only had done this whole deal and had started this mess because that was the only way Logan would have agreed. He wasn't so sure about that. Yeah, it didn't seem like Rory, but then again, he knew her better and more intimately than his friends. He had seen how surprisingly forward she could be, when it was just the two of them. How seducing. It was entirely possible that Rory really was perfectly okay with how things were between them and in that case...

In that case he really didn't want to make a fool out of himself and go ask her, the first girl ever, to go steady with him only to be turned down. No doubt gently, but still turned down.

No, that wasn't something he wanted to risk. Call him an emotional chicken-shit but he just couldn't do that.

Fuck.

No wonder he never had even thought about asking a girl to go steady. It was too damn risky. And ridiculous. He had jumped off cliffs and planes and scaffolds, he had dived into dangerous waters and depths, he had done some highly illegal things, had driven races that were way beyond being anywhere near safe and once he had even taken it on with an angry big cat and here he was, too scared to talk with a girl about becoming a couple.

How bizarre was that?

The door to his dorm banged open and an obviously very pissed off Australian stormed in, glaring daggers at Logan. "We need to talk, Huntzberger," he hissed.

Logan knew instantly that he was in trouble. He had no idea why, but if Finn called him Huntzberger and in that tone - then he was really angry with him. Not something that happened often with Finn. "Okay," Logan said slowly, careful, and laid his cell phone back onto the coffee table. Who knew, perhaps he'd need both his hands. "And what would you like to talk about, Finn?" he asked, still very careful.

Finn glared at him, apparently not pleased about Logan's calm reply. "You know who I've just run into?" he asked in a calm voice, too calm.

"Your dream woman?" Logan asked, raising an eyebrow.

The glare intensified. "Reporter Girl."

"Oh," Logan mumbled and looked away. He was so not in the mood to talk about her - let alone with a mad Finn. But why was he mad now? Logan hadn't seen Rory in a week - he hadn't done anything.

"Funny thing," Finn continued, his voice cold and yet, there was definitely smoldering beneath it all. "I told her I was surprised to see her, after all, I was of the opinion that the first thing you'd do upon our return would be to go seek her out and let go of all that frustration you've built up this past week over not seeing her or having sex 'cause you wouldn't fuck someone else either. Then I thought she was just returning from her weekly dinner with her grandparents to get back to you and offered her to escort her here. Imagine my shock when she refused my humble services."

"I haven't seen her yet," Logan said, shaking his head, still not seeing the problem here though.

"Oh, I've got that. Peg me as highly surprised when I learned that apparently, our love doesn't have the slightest idea where you are - not just tonight, but, as it seems, also for the last few days as well," Finn said and his voice and tone got icier with each word. "In fact, I think she mentioned that she hasn't seen or even heard from you for an entire week."

Logan frowned. "Yeah that's about it. So what's the problem? Did she ask you about me?" he wanted to know, not entirely pleased about his Ace interviewing his friends about his whereabouts.

"Of course she did not!" Finn flared up and with it, the temperature in the room turned up considerably. "She would never do that. I had to coax it out of her once I've seen how down she looked."

Sharply, Logan looked up. "She looked down? Why? Is she alright?" he wanted to know, worried.

Finn stared at him for a moment then flew up his arms. "Ugh! Just what an idiot are you? Of course she's not alright. She hasn't heard from you in a weak. She doesn't know what's wrong and frankly said, I don't get it either! Why on Earth haven't you at least called her and told her we're out of town? What is _wrong_ with you?"

His worries calmed down a bit, Logan went back to frown at Finn. Why was Finn making such a drama out of it? "It just didn't happen," he evasively told him with a shrug. He had already heard more than enough about what exactly Finn and Colin thought about his relationship with his Ace and he really wasn't ready to talk about it again.

"Oh, yeah, of course, that excuses it," Finn answered heatedly with biting sarcasm and disapproval.

With a sigh, Logan stood up. "I really don't see what's the problem here. I haven't talked to Ace in a while, so what? I don't owe her an explanation about my whereabouts any less than she owes me one."

"No, but you owe her respect," Finn replied coldly.

Logan stiffened. "Look, Finn, I don't want to fight with you, but leave it alone, will you? It's none of your business anyway and I'm really tired to remind you and Colin time and time again of that little fact."

Finn's green eyes glistened dangerously as he stepped closer to Logan. "You've hurt her and by God, that is my business. I don't know what idiocy you've talked yourself into now and frankly, I don't care. But you don't get to fuck a girl like Reporter Girl, hover close to her for weeks and all but piss on her to mark her as yours then just drop her like that, without a word, without anything." He stopped right in front of Logan, his eyes, angry, narrowed slits by now, glowering down at him. "You're my best friend, Logan, but right now, you're a real bastard to a very sweet girl who's my friend as well and you better stop and fix this right now, because frankly said, I'm tired of your stupid antics and insecurities. Get over yourself and make up your mind. And fuck, at least talk to her! Preferably without hurting her anymore than you already did with your fucking stubbornness!"

"I didn't hurt her," Logan hissed, glaring right back at Finn. He really hadn't, had he? He would never hurt her. So okay, he had taken himself some time away from his Ace to think, but hell, it was just a week. So what if he hadn't talked with Rory? That was no big deal, for Heaven's sake.

For a moment, Finn just stared at him, then he shook his head. "By God, you're such an idiot!" he hollered with disgust. "Ugh, I can't be around you right now. Just fix it!"

He stormed out as fast as he had whirled in.

Beyond anger and frustration, Logan grabbed the next best thing and hurled it through the room. It smashed against the wall, shattered and fell down in a million pieces. Turned out it's been an ashtray.

Running his hands through his hair, Logan fell back down into his chair, burying his face in his hands.

No wonder he had avoided relationships like the pest if such scenes were the result of it. It just wasn't worth it.

"I guess this Reporter Girl is the one who is, and I quote, 'no one'."

Glancing up, Logan saw that Keith, fully awake by now, big surprise, had sat up and was staring at him with his dark eyes.

Not giving an answer, Logan looked away again.

"May, may - so the rumors are true, huh?" Keith asked, amusement swinging in his voice.

Logan shot him a look that should have warned him to stop right there.

As usual, his look got ignored. "I didn't want to believe it when Jewls told me that she thought you've finally fallen for a girl. I thought it was that female urge to hook anyone single up with someone, interpreting too much into things. But she was right, wasn't she? You've actually fallen for a girl, hard, haven't you?"

Again, Logan offered no answer. He was tired to deny it. Besides - he was considering to become Rory's boyfriend so it probably had no use anyway. Of course, Finn hadn't asked about that - not that Logan would have told him, but still - it just wasn't fair!

"So far it has come: you, Logan Huntzberger, playboy extraordinaire, the epitome of the proud, majestic oak, standing there and withstanding all storms and obstacles, a magnet for sweet little birds flying in and nestle into your branches, and now, that proud, old oak has fallen, his branches has been cut off and you've been reduced to a comfortable chimney fire," Keith said with remorse, shaking his head - and grinning like an idiot, not to forget that.

Logan glared at him. "It's so typical of you to steal from Rock Hudson. And just for your information: I'm still standing. Nothing and no one has cut me down and even when Ace and I become a couple, I will still continue to stand proudly, as you've worded it," he informed Keith in a brisk tone.

Really.

Keith eyes widened a notch. "Well, why not Rock Hudson? He's been one of the best actors of his time and a remarkably man, an outrider for us all," he defended one of his favorite actors before he looked closer at Logan. "And sorry, did I just hear you right? _When_ you become a couple?"

Realizing his slip, Logan quickly looked away.

"Logan - are you really... Are you actually about to ask a girl to become your girlfriend?" Keith asked, quietly, all mock having left his voice and eyes.

His fingers nervously tapping, Logan avoided to look at his friend. "Maybe," he finally admitted, cringing a little.

It was one thing to think about it - but to actually admit it out loud... it was something entirely different. Suddenly, it felt a lot more real.

A lot more scary.

"Wow," Keith breathed.

Logan kept his silence, but inwardly, he could only agree with Keith. Yeah. Wow.

"So - who's the little Annette Bening?" Keith asked after a while, curiously.

Sighing, Logan looked back at him, frowning a little. He really, really, really wanted to end this conversation but then, what use would there be if he put an end to it now? Keith would continue to nag and sooner or later he'd heard more about Rory anyway.

"Lorelai Leigh Gilmore the third, though she goes by Rory," Logan told Keith. "And she's no Annette Bening," he added, grudgingly.

Again, Keith's eyes widened some more. "Gilmore? As in the Hartford-Gilmores? The friends of your parents?"

Logan just nodded.

"Dude, you not only fell, it's even a society girl on top of it?" Keith laughed, shaking his head. "God, Shira will be so pleased. I bet they give you the family engagement ring by the end of this year. Before you know it you and your girl are picking out china pattern."

"That so isn't funny," Logan gloomed, throwing Keith a dark look. "It's nothing like that - well, yeah, if we really get together I guess then we'll have to look out for those wedding crazed lunatics but that's not even an option for a very long time to come. None of us would want to marry before college is over and that's at least not for another two years, thank God. And even then..." he stopped his fretting, frowned, and messed up his hair with his hands again. "Fuck, what am I saying here? It's not even certain that I actually want to try a relationship with her in the first place!"

There was a loud heavy silence between them.

"But you _do_ think it at least possible that you might marry that girl one day," Keith said very quietly, it not being a question but a statement.

Nervous as hell, Logan got up to pace. "Of course not, I'm way too young to think about marriage," he initially denied, but then stopped briefly, running his hands over his face. "Maybe," he admitted, not only to Keith but also to himself. He wasn't sure he wanted the commitment thing at all but if he did and it worked out against all the odds - his Ace would be perfect, fulfilling all the necessary criteria his family would have to any girl marrying him and on top of that, also matching what he'd want from a wife, if he got to choose that was and not end up with some trophy wife like that stupid Fellon girl his mother had had wanted him to hook up with.

"Jeez - and I've thought I have something big going on in my life," Keith remarked dryly, his eyes searching Logan rather stunned. "I gotta say, I'd never thought you'd ever let one of your fuck-bunnies close enough to get at you like that. Let alone a society girl."

Frowning, Logan glanced back at him. "Rory's not a fuck-bunny," he made clear once and for all. "And you don't know her, but Ace's not a real society girl. Sure, she's got the name and once she's of age, also the money, but she grew up outside all this shit, she's not - spoilt by the whole prestige and glamour, actually doesn't like much about it and I doubt that's going to change, ever." He shook his head and resumed his pacing. "Besides, like said, it's not even sure we'll ever get together like that. I'm not a hundred percent sure I really want it and even if I want to, that doesn't mean that she necessarily wants to go steady. I... it's just really messed up at the moment."

And that was an understatement.

Yet, Logan had to find out that it actually did good to talk to someone about Rory who didn't know her or was obsessed with him to get together with her like Finn and Colin were. Not that it cleared up anything - but if he wanted to be honest, it did put things into another light at least.

"Sooo - considering all this I guess that this fantastic and totally unrealistic story about you being caught making out with a girl, which I assume now that this girl was the certainly charming young Ms Gilmore, by said girls mother, father and boyfriend of the mother is actually true after all too, huh?" Keith asked eventually after a long moment of silence, grinning maliciously. "I didn't want to believe it. It was so - soap opera. But it really happened, didn't it?"

"Your sister has definitely too big a mouth," Logan groaned, closing his eyes.

Jeez, would that story follow him for the rest of his life?

"Oh my God, that's just too hilarious!" Keith gasped, shaken by overwhelming fits of laughter. "Thanks, Dude, I really needed that. With all that knowledge I might just be enough distracted until tomorrow night."

"Glad to be of service," Logan growled with heavy sarcasm. "But I tell you, Landerson, you better stop it now or you better don't expect to find my sympathy when your parents disown you."

Amazingly, Keith shut up after that - well, not counting the constant bickering and chuckling that lasted for at least another thirty minutes until Logan, exasperated, draw back into his room.

Damn his friends.

* * *

TBC!

_(Author's Note: I know, I know. It took awfully long. And yes, I'm feeling terrible about that. Believe me though that right now, life's really hectic. Another reason why this took so long was that originally, I've planned to write one chapter for both this and then the next episode. Because really, Logan's only briefly heard on a message and that's all. But of course that plan failed because this piece here is already 32 pages and I've got 40 more into 'But I'm A Gilmore!' - and that without even reaching the dinner yet. It will be a monster. So I decided to divide it up and hopefully, as I've already have so much of the next chapter, the next one will come out faster than this one had. And I promise, in the next one, Logan finally got his head out of his ass and stops being such a boneheaded idiot. Anyway, hope you enjoy this bone here and you still stay tuned for the long awaited 'Different'-version of the next episode. Thanks for the tremendous support for my baby here, even when I don't manage to update in months.)_


	14. Dealing With Lunatics

**Chapter 14: Dealing with Lunatics**

**(But I'm A Gilmore)**

Logan was seldom glad that a weekend was over but this time, he definitely was. This weekend had sucked.

Still not having been able to make up his mind about what to do with his Ace, he had avoided her, hadn't even called her. And when he had seen that her car wasn't in her parking lot, meaning that she probably had left to go to that small town of hers, he wasn't sure if he should be disappointed by that or relieved.

They had organized a party with Keith's friends, just in case he would need a serious bucking up after his talk with his parents.

He had.

The talk hadn't gone over very well. His parents hadn't wanted to hear anything about Keith not going into the family business after his graduation - or concerning his sexual preferences... Well, after they downright had demanded him to simply forget this foolishness Keith had gotten up and left, Jewel trailing right after him, spitting mad. Logan supposed that the siblings had had a long, good talk on the way over because once they'd arrived at the Starwood to go on a club tour Keith had been astonishingly calm about his parent's reaction. Actually, Jewel was a lot more mad about it than her big brother. Then again, Logan was pretty sure that deep down, Keith had probably always expected that reaction - and now that it had happened, he at least knew where he and where his parents stood.

It wasn't quite clear what his parents would do once they've gotten over their shock and anger - disown their heir, reconcile with him, push him out of their family. Though Logan hadn't given up hope for his friend yet. After all, there was still Granny Landerson, who was completely on Keith's side. And she, unlike his parents, was the one who held the power over the money. Not the business money, but the family money and that was quite some fortune. Olympia and Garret wouldn't risk to lose all that money.

No, he felt positive that in the end, Keith would have a good end to his coming out and decisions for his life. Perhaps not a happy end, but at least a good end.

Another thing that was still not all right was his relationship with Finn. Eventually, Logan had tried to talk to his best friend - but the Australian had gone under, not even Colin having an idea where he had gone to. Then again, Colin hadn't been too happy with Logan either so perhaps he had just not told Logan, even if he knew where their friend was. So he had left messages - as long as he could. Typically Finn, he had had his voicemail almost full and it didn't take long to fill it up completely. So in the end, Logan had left a message for Finn on his own voicemail, hoping he'd get it.

Apparently he had because Finn did show up with the hummer at the Starwood. Acting as if nothing had happened, not mentioning their fight with one word and dodging all tries of Logan to talk about it. And yet - Logan felt that this wasn't over yet and while things between him and Finn weren't exactly strained - they weren't really cool either.

Logan hated it, but damn it, what was going on between him and Rory really wasn't Finn or Colin's business. They had no right to judge him just because he wasn't doing what they wanted him to do. If they were behaving like this already now, when he and Ace were simply seeing each other, how much worse would it get if he and Rory really hitched it up? Would it lessen up because he finally had come to his senses as they no doubt would see it or would they become even more protective of her? If it was the latter - then it would be just another reason why he should simply forget about his Ace.

He couldn't allow one girl to become between him and his best friends. He needed them too much for that.

Even if it was his Ace and the last thing she'd want was to cause trouble between him and Colin and Finn.

No, things weren't great at the moment and for the first time he could think of he was almost glad that soon he could go to his classes and get distracted by whatever the profs had to tell him about journalism and business matters.

And in the meantime, he could listen to some music while reading the newspaper, see how the concurrence was doing and what was happening in the world. After that... well, he'd see to that once the time had come.

His plan of distraction worked perfectly fine - until there was a knock on the door and to his surprise, the major cause of all his trouble was standing right in front of him, looking like hell. She was still beautiful, nothing could ever dim her natural beauty, but she did look like hell, pale as she was, her hair a flat mess and her eyes bloodshot. If he didn't know it better he'd say she was nursing an hangover, which hardly could be - his Ace never got drunk like that.

"Well, this is a surprise," he greeted her and a smile sneaked onto his face that he couldn't help.

She didn't smile back, her hands deeply buried in the jumper she wore, and Logan got an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Can I come in?" she asked, brusquely.

The unease grew but Logan pushed it away. "Sure," he cheerfully agreed and stepped back to let her in. "Want to sit down?" he offered. She really looked like she should sit down. What was wrong with her? Was she sick?

"Nope," she answered shortly though, stopping not far inside his living room. "Got to stay vertical," she added dryly, making a face.

Logan slowly closed the door, looking more closely to her. As far as he could tell she didn't look feverish but - what was that on her cheek?

"What?"

Apparently his staring hadn't gone unnoticed as she was frowning at him. Not too pleased. "You have, like, an octagon imprinted on your face," he explained, showing amusement, hoping to dispense the tension he could feel radiating from Rory while the unease he felt was growing by the second.

Something was up and he bet he wouldn't like it.

"I can't do this anymore, Logan," Rory blurted out, sounding completely defeated.

The unease turned to cold - something. "Do what?"

"This casual dating thing," she clarified sharply and Logan felt another rush of - was this panic? "I don't like it. It's not who I am and I don't want to make it who I am."

Oh yeah, it was panic, Logan thought dimly as he tried to think of something to do. He couldn't lose his Ace! "Whoa, hold on there," he said and moved past her to turn down the music. "Where's this coming from?" he wanted to know.

The last time they'd seen each other everything had still been perfect between them, hadn't it? So why had she suddenly enough of it, enough to want to end things? And just what all did she want to end? The sex? The flirting? Their friendship?

She came a bit further into the room. "It's coming from me. The ravishing creature standing in front of you," she retorted, sarcastically, with a notch of coldness in her voice.

"We talked about this," Logan pointed out, his hands buried into his pockets by now as well.

They had talked about it, damn it. He had told her that she wasn't that kind of girl and she had reassured him that she could do it anyway. She had no right to come now, after she had wormed her way into his every thought, after making him to be almost addicted to her, and want to end things between them! That wasn't fair!

"I know," she simply said.

"I didn't make you do this," he reasoned. If anything, it was the other way around.

"I know," she repeated with a nod. "I'm not accusing you of anything. This isn't your fault."

And truthfully, her eyes held no accusation. Only regret.

The panic inside him grew to a big, tight ball pressing against his chest. Why was this happening? Everything had been fine only a week ago!

"I don't understand," he said, shaking his head, his eyes searching hers for an answer, an explanation. "I thought everything was going so well."

It had, damn it. He might have been plagued by unbidden thoughts and doubts and indecisions while being alone but whenever they've been together, everything had been fine, all those things forgotten!

But she frowned, as if she couldn't believe his words. "What are you talking about? I haven't heard from you in a week," she replied, and this time, there was accusation in her eyes.

_Of course she's not alright. She hasn't heard from you in a weak. She doesn't know what's wrong and frankly said, I don't get it either! Why on Earth haven't you at least called her and told her we're out of town? What is wrong with you?_

That's what Finn had said, hadn't he? That's what had made Finn so angry. And now Rory wanted to break up with him over the same reason? What the hell was the matter with that?

"I was busy," Logan explained, exasperated, heaving his shoulders. Really, he didn't get what was so wrong with not talking to Ace for a week. It wasn't as if he had dropped her or anything. He had just needed time and then there had been Keith with his problems. "I had some friends in town, and..." he continued - or tried to.

"You know what? It doesn't matter," Rory interrupted him, shaking her head. "You're not my boyfriend, you don't owe me any explanations," she added, voicing exactly what Logan had told Finn. So why did it feel like a jab right into his gut now? "I just don't want to be one of the many anymore," she finished, bitterly.

Flabbergasted, Logan stared at his Ace. _What?_ "Oh, Rory, come on!" he said, unbelieving.

This was just ridiculous. So maybe they were casual but really, she never, not once, had been one of the many. Hell, she was the only one lately! She couldn't mean this seriously! She had to know how special she was, just like he had told her. Or did she really think it was his habit to go out with the same girl for that long, to spend so much time with her, never getting enough of her? She couldn't not know this!

Before she had a chance to respond, the door to Lanny's room opened. "Hey Logan, Cassandra's on the phone," his roommate informed him.

Phone? When had the phone rang? What the hell, he couldn't care any less now anyway. "Take a message," he told Lanny impatiently, his eyes not leaving Rory's face - and therefore not having missed her face closing off at Lanny's news.

But Lanny didn't buck one bit. "She's got a great accent. Where's she from?" he asked.

Jeez, how dense was that guy? He wanted to chat now of all the times? Couldn't he see that Logan was in the middle of something right now? Something really important? Reluctantly, he took his eyes off his Ace to glare at his stupid roommate. "Lanny! Message!" he snapped, hoping the idiot would get it finally.

Holding up his hands, Lanny looked back at Logan, wounded. "Fine. Relax, man. Jeez," he mumbled and thankfully, turned around and went back into his room, the door closing behind him.

"Go call Cassandra back. We're done here."

At Rory's frosty words, his eyes flew back to his Ace, panic welling up more than ever. _Done?_ "How are we done here?" he wanted to know, confused.

They couldn't be done just like that. Not after everything that had happened.

"I said everything I have to say," Rory answered matter-of-factly.

Was she serious? She had hardly said anything, let alone anything making sense!

"Which is what?" Logan demanded for clarification.

She rolled her eyes. "I'm a girlfriend girl, Logan. I have boyfriends, not escorts."

Everything stilled and then Logan was rushed with a heap of feelings once again - only this time, it was pure white anger. He narrowed his eyes. "Ah," he contributed and started to pace.

Escort. So she thought of him as an _escort_. Some nice arm to hang on to when she was in the mood. Damn her. He had let her get closer to him than any girl before her, they shared a simply miraculous sexual experience with each other every fucking time they came together, they've become friends for heaven's sake - but he was just an escort.

Fuck her!

"I thought I could be different, but I can't. I'm sorry," Rory continued and there was remorse in her eyes again. But then she shrugged. She simply shrugged. "Maybe we can just go back to being friends again," she suggested, casually.

Pacing back and forth, Logan just about snorted, stopped himself though. Did she really think they could go back to simply be friends after they had had a taste of how it could be between them? Was she really that naive? He couldn't believe it. Not his super-intelligent annoyingly smart Ace. Sly, manipulating know-it-all.

"Or maybe we can become boyfriend and girlfriend, right," he snarled with venom.

Oh, she was clever. He should have known right away that this was her ultimate goal when she had proposed him this fucking deal at her grandparent's wedding. So he didn't want commitment? Sure, no problem. Just make him believe he could have her, with no strings attached, seduce him with her almost virginal innocence, web him into her complicated, tricky web with her infectious laughter, the easy intimacy, the incredible sex, strip him of all his defences and make him a helpless addict to then hone in and issuing this ultimatum. She probably wanted him to think it had been his idea to perfect her evil plan on top of it all. But not with him! He wasn't born yesterday for Heaven's sake!

She scrunched up her face in confusion. "What?"

And a damn good actress she was too. She should get an Oscar for her excellent performances.

"I get it," Logan told her straight out. He wouldn't be fooled any longer, damn it! "I get what you're doing."

The confusion on her face grew. "I'm not doing anything."

Yeah right!

"Hey, if that's what you want then just come out and say it," Logan scowled, still hardly believing the game she played here. He always was one for honesty, even if it was brutal and she should know that. Should know that she'd get more if she went for honesty than by making up this farce. God, did she really think he was so unbelievable stupid? Fuelled by even more anger sipping in, he spread his arms. "But you coming in here and issuing an ultimatum..."

"I'm not issuing an ultimatum!" Rory protested and she truly looked spooked by his accusation.

And she sounded puzzled enough for it to penetrate through Logan's furious haze and let him consider for the first time since anger had flooded him that this wasn't some manipulative bitch of a gold-digger standing in front of him but his Ace. Incredibly smart but in some aspects, truly naive. Still...

"That's not what I heard," Logan pointed out, still agitated - to put it mildly.

"I said let's be friends!" Rory gave back, exasperated.

"That's not what you meant!" Logan told her, knowing that no matter what, he was right about that one.

In the end, she had come here to tell him that they were over unless he became her boyfriend. The friends-speech was just a means to the end, a cover up.

And she didn't deny it. Instead though, she flew her head back and stomped frustrated. "I need a taco!" she moaned.

Still pacing, Logan took a closer look at her again. Her frustration sure seemed real. And slowly he began to believe that she was in fact nursing a hangover, as atypically that would be for her. But the few times he had seen her drink too much, she always had wanted tacos the next morning. Though she had never looked as bad as right now. Why would she suddenly want to get this drunk? That so wasn't his Ace.

Was it really because of him and something he had done - or rather said, not done?

It sent his head spiralling, growing more aware of the situation he was facing right now. What he was doing.

And what was he doing? Picking a fight with her for not wanting to continue the non casual deal. Thinking that this had been a clever scheme of her to trap him into a relationship. A thought so ridiculous that in any other situation he'd laugh out loud.

But at the same time he couldn't stop worrying about her state and what would have made her to lose it so much that she had gone and drunken so much. That so didn't make any sense.

Whatever, he couldn't believe that he was doing and thinking all this shit rather than give himself a kick in the ass and see to it that he saved what he and his Ace had found over the past few months! After all, wasn't this what he had thought as well, basically? That they needed to stop this 'no strings' deal? Hadn't he himself halfway decided already that he wanted more as well? Hadn't he been this close to go and ask her to try out a relationship himself? And hadn't he only hesitated to do just that because he hadn't been sure where she really stood, if she actually wanted strings with him?

Well, now he knew it. She wasn't that kind of a girl. She wanted strings. She was a girlfriend or nothing.

So what the hell was he still waiting for? This was the perfect chance to finally put an end to this mess. Hell, he had to do something now.

He _couldn't_ lose her.

Coming to a fast and suddenly oh so easy decision, Logan crossed the distance between them and came to a stop in front of her. "All right, fine," he gave in. "I'll do it."

But Rory just looked up at him, not comprehending. "Do what?"

"I'll be your boyfriend," Logan told her impatiently. Really, she didn't need to make a big deal out of this.

But then she said the most unexpected thing. "You can't be my boyfriend."

Logan paused. _What?_ She didn't want...

"Why not?" he asked, perplexed.

"Because you _told_ me that you can't be my boyfriend," Rory explained, gesturing with her hands still in her jumper.

She was seriously throwing back his own words at him? Now of all the times? He had said that before all this, before he had known just how it would be to be together with Rory, for God's sake! "If I say I can, then I can," he assured her vehemently, but with a touch of annoyance about how stubborn she was.

Wasn't this what she had wanted all along anyway? Why make it so complicated now?

Apparently though, she was really very much for complicated.

"You have a hundred girls on speed dial. You keep a second bathrobe in your closet for overnight guests," she listed, not exactly accusatory but more matter-of-factly.

Logan waved her objections away. "That's all beside the point. You came here to say you were unhappy with the situation, right?" he asked, taking her by her arms.

"Right," Rory agreed.

"Fine. I've rectified the situation. Problem solved," Logan reasoned with logic. His Ace liked logic. She was one of the most illogical persons he had ever come across, but she liked her logic.

Of course, her illogical streak had to roar its annoying head once again. "No," she objected passionately. "Problem not solved!"

Ugh! He couldn't believe her!

"Hey!" he addressed her, making her see straight into his eyes, letting her see how serious he was here. Why did she have to be so difficult about this? "If I say I can do this, I can do this!" he once again insisted.

Did she really think he would offer something as serious as a relationship, especially with a girl like her, so carelessly? Could she really believe that any random girl could come to him and threaten to cut him off and he'd be compelled to make her his girlfriend just like that? No, he'd wish her farewell and then would go out and search for the next hot chick. But not with Rory. He didn't want the random fuck anymore. He wanted Rory.

The irritating sound of knocking interrupted his thoughts and whatever she had been going to say. This was just making him crazy! What was it with those fucking interruptions all the time? Irritated, he reluctantly let go of his Ace and went to the door, yanking it open - to find the least thing he could need right now on the other side. A bimbo.

"Hey, Logan," she breathed flirtingly, smiling seductively at him. "Thought maybe I could get you to buy me some lunch."

A very stupid bimbo. Even if he wasn't right in the middle of convincing his Ace to let him be her boyfriend he would never have fallen for such a lame invitation. "Oh jeez..." Logan muttered, rolling his eyes and looking back at Rory - whose face had closed off once again. Oh no! She couldn't take this Barbie here serious? Wordlessly, he shook his head at her, trying to make her understand that this visit was completely an act of desperation of - who was that bimbo anyway?

Avoiding Logan's eyes, Rory looked at the bimbo. "I'm sorry. Could you excuse us for just a second? We're almost done here," she said, awfully politely, in a tone Logan almost never heard coming from her. Like she was talking to a three years old. It spoke volumes to him about what she thought about the intelligent quotient of the bimbo and frankly, Logan could only agree.

"Sure," the bimbo chirped. "I'll just wait out here."

See? Relieved to be rid of her, Logan closed the door, his whole attention on the girl he wanted more than anything he had ever wanted in his life and intent to ensure that he would also get her, now that he had finally made up his mind about her.

If she just wouldn't be so goddamn stubborn!

"So the Swedish flight attendants should be here any minute," she commented dryly, but her voice was so soft that it displayed her hurt more than enough.

Quickly, Logan went back to her. "I swear this situation has never happened to me in my _life_," he swore and it was true. While he had always been popular with the ladies, this right now was downright ridiculous. Here he was, trying for the first time in his life to convince a girl to date him, exclusively, and just then bimbos had to pop up everywhere.

"Logan," Rory said weakly, shaking her head.

"Rory," Logan called her name, intensely, knowing that when he used her name she usually shut up to really listen to him. At least in important conversation like this one. And sure enough, she stopped to look at him, hesitant but waiting, ready to listen. Finally. "Do you really want to stop seeing me?" he asked, quite sure about her answer. And yet, with all the resistance she displayed at letting him be her boyfriend, there was still a small doubt lingering in the back of his mind.

Thank God she shook her head almost immediately. "No, but I can't..."

Suppressing a sigh of relief, Logan interrupted her. "'Cause I don't want to stop seeing you," he admitted, telling her nothing but the truth.

He might have entertained the possibility to give up on her in the past, even recently, but the moment she had come to stop it herself, deny him any means of being with her in the future, he had known that he couldn't give up on her. Couldn't and wouldn't.

"Okay," she slowly amended. "But..."

Again he interrupted her. "So then just accept what I'm saying," Logan pleaded. "I like trying new things. It's new, it's different, but I can do it," he emphasized.

This time, finally, he could see that she was considering it at last. "Are you sure?" she asked, uncertainly, searching his eyes.

Not knowing what else to say to make her believe him, Logan did the only thing he could think of. He acted by grabbing her and pulling her in for a kiss, laying all the desperation he had felt over the past week into this one kiss.

When he let go of her lips, she bit her lip, looking at him with a mixture of frustration and uncertainty. "Well, I know you can do _that_, but..."

She still wasn't convinced, apparently. Hell, what else had he to do to make her understand just how much he wanted her? Not just sexually, that should really be self-explanatory after the past two months, but all of her, her warm friendship and silent support, her gentleness, her obsession of coffee, her addiction to books, her joy at writing and reading, her quirks, everything. He still had no words to express all that he was feeling so once again, he reached for her, drawing her into a kiss, but this time, he didn't just let her feel his desperation, but everything else as well, let her feel how much he _wanted_ and needed her. How serious he was with this.

When he drew back to gaze into her eyes again he could see that finally, he had gotten through to her. Her resolve was crumbling.

"I really want to believe you," she whispered and for the first time since she had shown up at his doorstep, there was hope in her eyes.

"Then believe me," Logan urged her on. "We're starting fresh right now, new beginning," he said, staring intently at her. When she didn't protest again, he continued, encouraged. "So you want to go grab some lunch?" he asked hopefully. "We'll hammer out the details," he added, more uncertainly this time.

This was a whole new situation for him, after all. Him in a committed relationship... But like said, he could do it if he wanted to and God, he wanted to.

"I should probably change first," Rory answered with hesitation, looking down at herself.

YES!!!!

Unable to stop the grin starting to spread out on his face, Logan nodded eagerly. "Go home, change. I'll pick you up in half an hour."

"Okay." She smiled, a bit shyly, but it was a smile, a real smile and suddenly, Logan felt like he was flying. Who would have thought that becoming a boyfriend felt so incredibly and exhilaratingly good? Needing to feel more of her, Logan honed in for another kiss that sent him flying even higher.

He grinned, happily. "See how good this is going so far?" he asked, laughing. "I think I'm going to be an excellent boyfriend."

He would make damn right sure that he would be the best boyfriend a girl ever had! His Ace deserved no less. Besides, he always strived to be the best at whatever he was doing.

Rory laughed as well, the sparkle finally back in her wonderful blue eyes. "I agree," she nodded, then looked past him to the door. "Now do you want to go tell her or should I?"

Huh? Oh! The bimbo...

"Oh crap! I'll be right back," Logan told her, giving her a look to tell her to stay exactly where she was, before he turned to go outside.

The least thing he wanted to do right now was deal with that bimbo, not when he had his own girl waiting for him in his living room, but the rational part in him told him that it probably was wiser to take care of that girl - and all the others.

He was off the market now and what better way to make that clear than by starting with this bimbo?

The girl was leaning against the wall opposite his door but pushed away immediately when he came outside, sauntering over to him, her hips swinging suggestively and totally unnatural. Suppressing an eyeroll, Logan softly closed the door behind him. His Ace did not need to witness this.

He smiled happily.

_His_ Ace. Truly his Ace now.

His thoughts came crashing down when he felt two very unwanted hands stroking over his chest.

"What are you in the mood for? Some good old nice Italian? Or rather some classy French bistro?" The bimbo breathed, looking at him with hooded eyes and coquettish smile on her big wet lips. "Or do you want something more - spicy?"

Taking a step back, Logan grabbed her hands and removed them off him. He didn't like being touched without invitation and he certainly didn't want to be touched by anyone else than his Ace right now, particularly though by this girl here. "Look..."

"Trixie," the girl supplied, winking at him.

This time, he couldn't help the eye roll. Really. Who was this girl anyway? He couldn't remember ever having met her, let alone gone out with her and having given her any invitation to come seek him out like she had - nor did the name ring any bells. But then, there were some girls who tried to get him to go out with him by pretending that they've met before, counting on the fact that he couldn't always remember his actions after a long, wet night. And perhaps he did have trouble to remember certain things sometimes but he very rarely got this drunk. Plus, he had a pretty good memory. He may not always be able to come up with the right name - but as far as he knew he had so far recognized every single one of the girls he had slept with.

"Look, Trixie," he started again and moved her farther away from him and let go of her. "Not that I'm not flattered by your invitation but it's not going to happen. I can't."

It took a moment to register for the bimbo but once she did, her face fell and she frowned. "What?"

Logan took another step back. "We're not going to have lunch together. Or dinner. Or breakfast. Or _anything_," he made clear, giving her a poignant look.

Her frown deepened. "But..."

"No," Logan interrupted her decidedly, shaking his head.

Still, the bimbo shook her head. "I don't understand. They said... I mean I thought..."

Logan raised an eyebrow, briefly wondering who exactly 'they' were. But then, it didn't really matter. "I don't know what you may have heard or thought and frankly said, I don't care. Besides, things are different now." He looked back over his shoulder at his door and thought of his Ace, waiting inside for him and involuntarily, he smiled again. Time to get back to his girl. "You could do me a favor though: I've got a statement to say: I'm done dating randomly, I'm off the market. Pass along this message to _them_, please," he said, looking back at the bimbo, drawing immense amusement out of the flabbergasted expression on the girl's face. Flashing her the patented Huntzberger shark smile, he turned to go back into his dorm.

"What?" the bimbo said again, but this time, her voice was filled with venom. "Don't tell me that strange bookwormish freak you've been seen with lately managed to actually fool you with her big baby-blue eyes," she laughed, deridingly.

Logan froze and slowly looked back at her before letting go of the doorknob and stepping towards her. "Yes, she has," Logan confirmed, his eyes hard, his voice cold. "And if you'd have a sixteenth of her intelligence you'd know that the last thing you want to do is getting me angry at you by badmouthing my girl. I have a newsflash for you: even without my Ace in the picture I wouldn't have gone out with you," he told her calmly. "Even I have my standards and sorry, babe, you're far below them. Now I suggest you leave. Go get the message spread." He stepped back, waving her away. "Just a fair warning: don't let me hear that you've said anything hateful and bad against Rory again. Or I _will_ be very angry and very much out for revenge, something you'd want even less than me just being angry," he added in a low, flat voice, giving her a last warning glare before he turned and slipped into his dorm once again.

Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly again. That had been unpleasant.

His eyes fell onto his Ace, having sat down onto the couch, totally engrossed into the newspaper he had read in before her arrival and he relaxed, already forgetting the skank again. Smiling, he went over to sit down beside her. "Thief," he stated, tapping the newspaper.

She looked up and he was pleased to see that her face had more color again. Looked like her spirits had come back to her.

His Ace made a face. "That's not fair: I'd love to say 'Liar' back at you but..."

"But I'm many things but a liar truly is not one of those," he finished for her, amused.

"Exactly," she nodded, giving him a look. "What a shame for this great movie reference to be wasted like that." Folding the paper up again, she put it away. By the time she looked back at Logan, she was serious again. "Everything taken care of?" she asked softly.

"Hmm," Logan answered and used one of his hands to draw her over to him so he could kiss her. A kiss that was fervent with passion and the more he got from it, the more he wanted. Soon, he had moved closer to her, pushing her down onto the couch and while her hands clung to him and pulling him more and more down onto her, his hands started to move on its own, finding the familiar way beneath her jumper, beneath her t-shirt, until they finally reached the soft, smooth, silky skin of hers. Beneath him, Rory trembled but before he had a chance to explore higher up with his hands, she suddenly pushed at him and sat up, wearing that deep blush and all over all, pretty much flustered.

So cute.

Logan tried to steal another kiss from her but she evaded him and lightly slapped his hands, trying to reach for her again.

"Logan - we can't do this out here. Lanny's right in the next room. He might come out any second now," she gently scolded him.

Glancing at his roommate's closed door, Logan started to think more clearly again. Right. He didn't want Lanny walking in on them any less than Rory. Taking her hand, he stood up, pulling her up along with him. "Then let's move this to my room."

"Logan!" Rory protested though, shaking her head, chuckling. "He'll still be next room."

Logan shrugged. "But he knows better than to walk in there."

Still, she shook her head. "I don't think so."

Frowning, Logan looked closer at her. "What's wrong? You never minded Lanny before. Or Paris for that matter."

"Yeah, but this is different, Logan. I don't want..." she broke off and looked down, blushing even more.

"Hey." Raising an eyebrow, Logan raised her head with a finger under her chin so he could look into her eyes again. "What's going on, Ace?"

She sighed. "Nothing, I just... Look, I know that this is nothing knew for us. Heaven knows we already had a lot of that. But now - it's something different, Logan, and the first time we... well," she waved embarrassingly at the couch and at them, "I'd really like it to be a bit more..." she stopped and sighed again.

"Romantic?" Logan smiled, finally getting the problem.

She nodded, not looking back at him.

Shaking his head he enveloped her into his arms and kissed the top of her head. Truthfully, he couldn't see the big difference here, but then he wasn't a girl either. And maybe, she wasn't this wrong about it. After all, she was the expert on the commitment thing here, not him and if she said she wanted their first committed sex as a couple to be more romantic, then by all means, romantic she shall have. Actually, now that he was already starting to formulate plans in his head, he had to admit that she definitely was right and it couldn't harm to wait a little to make this special for both of them.

"Besides, I seem to remember hearing about you promising me lunch," she added, drawing him out of his plan making. "And you know the rule, Huntzberger."

"Right," Logan laughed. "Never make a Gilmore girl false promises about food."

"Exactly," she nodded, giving him a relieved look.

Gazing down at her, Logan caressed her cheek. "And we still have to have that talk. Hammer out the details," he added softly.

"Yeah," she agreed quietly, but with a smile.

"And you wanted to change first," he nodded, remembering.

Making a face, she sighed. "A definitely yes on that one. I need a shower. After spending the night on the bathroom floor I don't even want to think about what all crawls over me right now - or has crawled over me," she muttered darkly, shivering.

_Spending the night on the bathroom floor_, Logan thought, frowning, but pushed it away for the time being. He'd have to ask her about what made her look like she had anyway, but it could wait a little more. Kissing the tip of her nose, he let her slip out of his arms. "Well then, let me bring you back to your dorm so by all means you may shower and change," he said and, interlacing his fingers with hers, pulled her towards the door.

"I thought you're going to pick me up in half an hour?" Rory asked, raising her eyebrows.

"And once I've delivered you safely to your humble living space I'm still going to come pick you up," Logan nodded and led her out of his dorm.

"Logan, really, don't be ridiculous. It's broad daylight. You really don't have to escort me back. I'm pretty sure I'll be safe on my own," Rory said, shaking her head, her eyes sparkling with amusement though.

"I don't think so. I'm your boyfriend now, am I not?" Logan countered, pulling her a bit forward so he could wrap his arm around her waist. "The way I've heard it, the boyfriend is supposed to bring the girl home. I'm just doing my duty here."

Besides, this way he could make sure that that bimbo didn't wait anywhere to attack his Ace verbally. Something he wouldn't put past that girl. She seemed to be stupid enough to try something like that. Logan knew that type of girls well enough. They're sour losers and probably, he shouldn't have been so cold when turning her down - but when she had badmouthed his Ace... he just hadn't been able to help himself. Usually, he tried to avoid those girls, ignore them. Obviously, not always with success. Hopefully though, now that he was off the market and word got around abut that they would leave him alone. It would probably take some time though and until then, he definitely didn't want his Ace to get the brunt of their disappointment, as deluded any of their hopes may have been in the first place. And warning - what was her name again? - off was one step towards securing that.

"Duty, huh?" Rory smiled and shook her head. "Oh boy, we've got a lot to talk about."

"You know me: I'm an excellent listener and fast learner," Logan told her, smirking down at her.

"If you want to," she nodded.

"You've got to have priorities in life," Logan shrugged.

"How very philosophical of you," his Ace replied dryly. "That's a whole new side of you."

"Ace, you've still got a lot to learn about me. As I about you," he added, more seriously, and stopped, turning to face her and cup her cheek, slightly caressing it as he stared down into her eyes. "Which is a good thing, otherwise we'd bore ourselves to death."

"Be bored - with you? You acknowledge the possibility such a thing could ever happen?" she smiled. "Are you sick?"

"Too funny," Logan whispered just before he closed the barely existent distance between their lips to steal a kiss, wrapping his Ace more into his arms. "You're a bad, bad girl," he concluded, giving her a mere peck onto her lips this time.

Rory laughed and freed herself out of his arms to turn and open her door. "Just don't expect me to spank you anytime soon," she retorted, looking back at him over her shoulder. "Half an hour?"

Logan nodded. "I'll be the dashingly handsome guy knocking onto your door."

"Okay, but I'm only going to let you in - the ego stays outside," Rory gave back and with a last flash of her grin at him, she slipped inside and closed the door.

Chuckling, Logan shook his head and turned to head back to his dorm. No, there really wasn't much danger that his Ace would ever bore him. This last what, half an hour, yet another proof for that. And he couldn't wait what the rest of the day would bring. Until then though, he had half an hour in Gilmore time to make some preparations, starting with bribing Lanny to spend this night away from their dorm.

His girl wanted special and romance?

She'd get it.

* * *

Exactly forty-five minutes later, Logan picked up a freshly showered and dressed Rory who looked incredible hot now and surely made him the single most lucky guy on campus to lead her out to his Porsche. She raised an eyebrow, but got in without a word and let Logan drive her to their destination with only trying to coax it out of him for half of the ride.

Logan had known the perfect place to have their lunch and start this day of romancing his girl and sure enough, when Rory saw the shabby building they approached, her eyes lit up in a warm, touched way.

"Marcelino's?" she asked softly.

Smiling contently, Logan nodded while he parked the car. Once outside, he interlaced their fingers to walk over to the entrance. "Somehow that seemed fitting," he told her. And it was. What better place to have their first lunch together as a couple than the place they had their first lunch together, just the two of them and both learning just how much fun they had together on an almost-date?

"It is," she agreed quietly and squeezed his hand as they entered the restaurant.

Once they had placed their orders, getting a good laugh at the waiters face when he took in Rory's very special lunch wish, Rory looked around appreciating. "We still haven't tried to bring Colin here."

"No," Logan agreed and shrugged. "And while I'm still sure his reaction to this place would be hilarious - I start to think it's nice to have a place of our own, where just the two of us go to and where the chances are slim to run into my friends."

Her eyes went back to him and her smile grew. "Or mine. I gotta say, you're not that bad at all at that boyfriend stuff so far."

"Good," Logan nodded with a grin but then turned serious. "But you know, this truly is something new to me. I might need help at one time," he admitted, not feeling the slightest shame about that. This was too important.

"Okay," Rory nodded. "I'll try to remember that when something comes up," she promised. "But you know, I may have had two relationships but if I learnt something then it is that no relationship is like the other. Where one thing worked great in one, the same thing was a source of constant problems in the other." She shook her head. "And I bet that with you, everything will be very different from what I had with Dean and Jess. Which is good of course - but it will make me as new to it as you are."

He remembered who Dean was but who was this Jess-guy? Now was not the time to go into the topic of her exes, though, he reminded himself. "That's relieving to hear," he smiled, leaning back.

The waiter appeared with their drinks and he waited until he had disappeared again before Logan picked up their conversations once more. "Maybe there are some ground rules we could lay out so this will work out really good?" he suggested, raising an eyebrow.

"Ground rules?" Rory asked, her eyebrow matching his.

Logan nodded. "Yeah, I'm aware that there probably will be a lot of stuff that's unpredictable but I'm sure there are some things we can settle now."

She laid her head to the side, her eyes studying him. "Like what?"

Frustrated, Logan shook his head. "I dunno - like said, this is new. Why don't you tell me what all you expect to change to how things were before this morning," he proposed, then hesitated for a second. "What made you want to end it in the end?" he asked gently - but also curiously.

She sighed. "Do we really have to go into that now? Can't we just enjoy lunch?"

"Nope. It's best we hammer this out now - so we can then fully enjoy ourselves," he refused, amusement swinging in his voice.

She let out another sigh, a deeper one this time. "All right. Okay, what's to change?" she lamented and eyed him somewhat warily. "Well, first thing's pretty obvious: no more girls," she said, determined, giving him a hard look.

Undisturbed by that, Logan nodded. "That one's self explanatorily. Even I know that," he concurred immediately and his eyes hardened as well. "No more guys either, of course," he demanded himself, thinking darkly of Robert. Or that guy at the coffee cart.

Though he hoped that now that they were officially together, the guys around campus would know better than to try steal away his girl. Besides, Rory would be faithful to him, he had no doubt about that. Even if other guys still flirted with her, she'd never let it go anywhere, not while being together with him. She just wasn't cut that way and he knew he could trust her completely in that matter. Which meant he had no need to get jealous ever again. 'Good. Very good', he thought with satisfaction.

"Of course," Rory nodded as well and this time it was her who sounded amused.

He gave her a questioning look she chose to ignore though.

"Anything else?" he asked instead, letting it drop.

She slowly nodded and this time, she looked downright nervous. Curious, Logan waved her to continue. She breathed in and opened her mouth but in that moment the waiter appeared with their meals and put Logan's plate of spaghetti down in front of him and then Rory's much bigger plate down in front of her, wearing an expression of absolute disgust. Oblivious to it, Rory smiled him her thanks and then happily dug in, the waiter standing frozen beside them and watching her with horrified fascination. Grinning, Logan distinctively made a bit more noise than necessary when he picked up his own cutlery. "Thank you," he said to the waiter who did came out of his state and with a nod and a last wary glance at his Ace hurried away to tend to the other guests.

But truly, Logan couldn't blame the guy. Logan himself had hardly been able to believe his ears when he had heard Rory's special wish for lunch. Looking at her plate he felt his stomach twitch uncomfortably and he quickly concentrated back onto his spaghetti al tonno.

"So," he started after a while, glancing at his Ace. "What else was there that you wanted to say?"

Meeting his eyes, her hands slowed and again, that uncertain, hesitant look came over her. "Well - don't get this wrong, it's not that I want to control you or tie you down in any way but - I really need you to keep me up on your general whereabouts, Logan. You can't just vanish for a week without giving me a word or at least leave me a message, never calling me back either." She put down the fork and knife. "I wasn't sure if I've done something to get you mad or if you just met someone new and more exciting or if you were just bored with me or if you've been called away by your father again or hell, it could also have been that you were hurt or sick and I - it drove me crazy, Logan. You need to talk with me about your plans."

Logan frowned and put down his cutlery as well, giving her his undivided attention. Again this damn week of no contact. Though, hearing some of her thoughts over the week he started to see at least why she and Finn had been so wound up about it. He still didn't quite see though why she would come to such wild conclusions. "I'm sorry about that, Ace, but you've got to believe me that I had no idea you'd make such a big deal out of this. That you would interpret so many and so wrong things into it. I would have called you otherwise, believe me."

She bit her lip. "Why didn't you call?" she asked quietly.

It was his turn to sigh. "I'm not sure completely. Saturday before last an old friend of mine came to visit. He - had some trouble and was having kittens over telling his parents some really major things this Saturday. He needed to blow off some steam."

"So he came to the expert," Rory concluded dryly.

Logan flashed a smile. "And a very wise decision that was. Between Colin, Finn and me Keith truly could forget about his parents and his life for a while. We were clubbing the whole weekend. Then Monday, after my presentation, we decided to make a quick trip to Cuba."

Her eyes widened. "You were in Cuba? Just like that?"

"Yeah," Logan simply said. He knew she was sometimes uncomfortable with how easy he and his friends jetted around the world but she would have to get used to it. Not just because of their relationship. And not even because of all the money she'd inherit one time. But if she really wanted the foreign correspondent job she'd definitely have to get used to it.

"Wow."

"It wasn't bad," Logan replied easily, searching her eyes. "But I missed you like crazy. Pretty much spoiled all the fun I could have had."

Her eyes grew bigger as a blush crept onto her cheeks. "You did?"

Logan didn't like her surprise at that little revelation. "Yeah," he insisted softly.

"And yet you didn't call," she pointed out, confused.

"No," Logan admitted and made a face, searching for a way to explain this. He didn't want to but obviously, it was important for her. "Look, Rory, you weren't the only one not completely happy about our situation. While it was great when we were together, everything apart from that somehow felt wrong. And I've been feeling things I've never had before and it all came back to you in the end. I was aware that something needed to change, I just wasn't sure what. I needed to think, I needed time - and I can't think around you, Ace. So, apart from being busy with my friend I guess I did avoid you in a way." He leaned forward and reached across the table to take her hand into his, making sure she still looked into his eyes. "But I haven't done it deliberately. And God, Ace, believe me, you haven't done anything, being bored of you is an impossibility and there were no other girls, Rory, not for a while actually. It's just been you, but that was part of my issues, because it was - strange for me."

"Just me?" she repeated and to Logan's disappointment, she sounded kind of skeptic about that.

"_Yeah_," he emphasized, willing her to believe him.

"And - you weren't so happy about our little deal anymore either?" she asked and he was glad that this time she sounded more wondrous than anything else.

"No I wasn't," he assured her yet again. "Truthfully? I probably would have cracked soon myself and asked you to perhaps try to add a few strings. I just wasn't quite there yet."

"And now?" she asked softly.

"Now?" Logan smiled and squeezed her hand. "Now there's nothing I'm more sure about right now than this. I want you, Ace. All of you."

"Even my hang to prefer studying to other things?" she asked doubtfully though he could tell by the twinkle in her eyes that she was kidding now. At least partly.

"Even with your irrational urge to study and read about everything there is," he sighed dramatically, laying his free hand over his heart.

"Good," she replied, rolling her eyes. "'Cause I want you too. Even with that impossible habit of yours to distract me all the time."

Logan started to grin. "And even with my ego too?"

"Nope," she said, picking up her fork again. "And even if I'd want to I couldn't. That's way too big to fit in anywhere."

Laughing out loud, Logan let go of her hand with a last caress and picked up his own fork, watching with incredulous eyes how his Ace piled more and more of the many and various things on her plate onto her fork to then push it all into her mouth and warmth and a strange feel of calm filled him from inside out until he was almost sure it had to overspill any moment there, flooding the place. An unfamiliar feeling. But, looking at his Ace and thinking back over everything that had happened since he had met this amazing girl for the second first time he had a good hunch what it may be, despite all the odds.

It had to be happiness.

* * *

"Dessert?"

Rory gave him an incredulous look. "Do you even have to ask?"

"Right," Logan smirked. It had been a stupid question. "And I guess I don't need to ask about coffee either."

This time, she didn't even bother to answer him. Shaking his head, Logan winked their waiter back over to order the dessert menu. Flying over the choices, Logan laid the menu down and watched Rory scan the menu thoroughly, taking in the way she licked over her lips over a few of the desserts, how her eyes lit up when she saw two or three especially luring desserts and then how a small frown appeared on her forefront when she tried to decide just what she wanted to pick. That was his cue.

"Want to share?" he offered.

Without looking up, she glanced at him. "Sure. If you just want barely the tip of a spoon, we can share alright."

"I meant the desserts you'd like to have but can't pick between them," Logan corrected her with a wide grin.

Now she looked up, narrowing her eyes on him. "How did you know..."

Logan's grin just widened. "Come on, which desserts lured you in?"

She regarded him for a moment longer then shrugged. "The tricolored mousse au chocolat looks really yummy. But so sounds the panna cotta. And I guess the cherry tiramisu must be delicious as well."

Nodding, Logan signaled the waiter that they were ready to order. His pen and note book ready, the waiter appeared at their side.

"The lady wishes the panna cotta and for me please the tricolored mousse au chocolat," he ordered, suppressing hard to laugh out loud when he saw his Ace's jaw literally slack down as she stared at him with surprise. "And then it would be great if you could also bring a small portion of the tiramisu for us, two forks please. Then we'd like to have an espresso for me and..." he looked at Rory.

"For me too please. Plus a cappuccino," she finished, smiling up at the waiter.

"Sure Sir, Miss," the waiter nodded while throwing another unbelieving glance his Ace's way and then vanished towards the kitchen.

"You know, you didn't have to..." Rory started to stay.

"Relax Ace," Logan interrupted her. "I wanted to. I'm not that hungry anymore and I doubt I'd have managed to eat a whole dessert, considering the size of their portions here. Remember, not everyone has that phenomenal stomach of yours. Besides, your choices did sound very good."

"Well, in that case..." Rory amended, grinning.

"Hmm. But I do hope that I get more than the tip of a spoon to share from your panna cotta," Logan teased her.

Letting out an extra long sigh, she shrugged. "I guess you will," she conceded unenthusiastically.

"Too generous of you," Logan nodded, sarcastically.

"Very much indeed," Rory nodded but then her face cleared and she started to beam. "Seriously though: thanks. That's almost as good as the books. And the ice cream."

"I aim to please," Logan halfway bowed. "Got to satisfy my girl after all."

"Yours, huh?" Rory smiled, her eyes shining.

Something deep down tightened inside Logan. "Yeah. Mine," he declared quietly, his voice a bit rough as a surge of possessiveness jolted through him.

"You won't go all caveman on me, though, won't you?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Logan threw her a puzzled look. "Caveman?"

"Yeah, you know: Yo, she's mine - back off - routine, hovering close and go insane with jealousy if a guy so much as glances my way," Rory elaborated.

"Do you want that?" Logan frowned, momentarily thrown a bit.

"No, not at all," Rory said, shaking her head. She sat up and reached over to take Logan's hand. "A bit jealousy is fine, it's healthy but it can't go overboard. I had it become a problem once with my boyfriends and in the end it's been a big part of the reason why we broke up in the end. I just... Look, like you said, I'm yours. So far you've been pretty much relaxed about other guys. Well, apart of the time at Finn's party. You can trust me."

"I know that. Why would you think it could be a problem?" Logan asked, his frown deepening.

Her eyes fell down.

"Is this because of Robert?" Logan wanted to know. She had mentioned him after all.

She looked back at him. "You were a bit - intense about him."

He sighed. That was one word to describe it. "I trust you, Ace, I do. But when you came with Robert to the party, things were different. It may be unfair but even despite our deal I haven't expected you to date other guys as well, not really. You're just not that girl. And then it was Robert - Robert and I don't have exactly the best track of records. Now though we're together and I know I don't have to worry anymore, Ace." He smiled. "Or do I come across as a guy plagued with so much insecurities that he has to go all caveman on you?"

She smiled back and he could see that some tension in her relaxed, vanished. "No, not exactly."

"Good, because I'm not," he simply said, moving his thumb in a slow circle over her hand. "But when we're already at clearing some things up anyway: Want to tell me what you did that you looked like you looked this morning?"

Immediately, she blushed and averted her eyes. Increasing the pressure on her hand, he forced her to look back at him. "Hey, tell me. I want to know. After all, it must be big that you came to me like that, wanting to end things."

"We already talked about this," she protested.

"Partly. But you never told me what was the last straw," Logan pointed out.

"It's not important," she tried again.

"Oh yes, it is," Logan contradicted.

"You don't want to hear this," she reasoned, reluctantly.

He frowned. "All the more reason for you to tell me. Come on, Ace, just say it."

Her head dropped and she sighed deeply. "Miss Patty's founder punch. It's pure acid. I think even Finn would be conquered by that punch after maximum four cups of them. I drank three," she admitted, making a face. "Hence the hangover of the century. I'm never touching that poison again," she vowed darkly.

Logan digested that. So she really had gotten herself drunk. Only one question left now. "And why did you want to get drunk in the first place?"

It took a long time for her to answer. "Because of you," she finally answered softly.

He had more or less expected that and still - to hear her say it out loud felt like a stab to his heart. He had never wanted her to hurt because of him. Never. "Because I didn't call you?" he asked disbelievingly, waves of guilt crashing over him.

Rory nodded, still avoiding his eyes and when she spoke, he had to strain to understand her whispered words. "I - didn't understand. Asked myself what I've done. Why I'm not enough."

The guilt stung like a thousand, glowing hot needles. Fuck. "Jeez, Ace," he gasped and reached out, capturing her other hand and pulled, forcing her to finally look back at him. "I'm sorry. I had no idea you felt that way. But please, Rory, don't ever do that again. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. If you've got that big a problem, talk to me about it, don't go and try to drink it away. It doesn't work that way, believe me. I know it," he said, trying to lighten the mood a bit.

She smiled faintly. "I'll try to."

"You do that," he nodded and locked his eyes with hers. "And you know better now, right? No more nonsense like that."

Rory shook her head.

"Good. And for what it's worth, I'm sorry I didn't get my act together sooner," Logan apologized. And really, now that he was here, with his Ace, as a couple, he had a hard time to believe that he had been so stupid to wait so long, fret over committing to Rory so much.

But Rory shook her head. "You don't have to be, Logan. I tried to be the careless, stringless girl because I thought it would be a nice change for once and because I wanted you of course, but it's been my decision and mine alone. I couldn't be it, I couldn't not feel like you actually were my boyfriend and not just a friend with benefits despite all my efforts and it was on me to admit that to myself. It's certainly not your fault."

"You're something," Logan said softly. He didn't quite agree with her - but at the same time, he didn't quite disagree. After all, he too had to come to the revelation that he'd rather be Rory's boyfriend than not be together with her at all on his own. He hadn't been ready yet to take that step when his Ace had proposed their deal, he knew that. Perhaps Rory hadn't been ready for another relationship either back then. It didn't matter. They were here now, together, and that was all that counted.

"Excuse me?"

Startled, the pair looked up to see the waiter in front of them, balancing three plates of dessert in his hands. Embarrassed (his Ace of course) and laughing (Logan), they drew back, letting go of each other hands, so that the waiter could put down the plates.

Grabbing his spoon, Logan winked at his Ace. "Have fun, Ace."

* * *

A good hour later, Logan and Rory were back on Campus, walking towards his room with Rory securely tucked into his arm. He secretively hoped that everyone would see them, see that they were more than just dating now and spread the word. Actually, he would have shouted it from the rooftops but that was so cliché. So he was content with merely keeping her close to him in a perhaps a bit over displayed show of possessiveness but hey, as long as his Ace didn't mind...

"How's that headache of yours?" Logan wanted to know, thinking about the next step in their program. He had a trip to the theatre in mind but if her headache was still bad that wouldn't be that good an idea.

But Rory laughed. "Subsiding a little. The mashed potato, mac and cheese, biscuit, gravy plate combo really helped a lot."

Logan grinned, remembering the waiters face when she had ordered it. "I have to say, half the fun in being with you is the horrified looks on the waiters' faces," he teased.

"Please. I'm an amateur compared to my mother," Rory protested, chuckling.

It wasn't the first time Rory had mentioned that but Logan still had a hard time believing that. He had seen his Ace ate. It was quite unimaginable that someone else could have as big and as a strange appetite as Rory - even if it was her mother. But he knew that a discussion would be fruitless so he changed the topic. "So what do you think? You up for a movie?" he asked, pretty sure of her answer, now that he knew that her head was doing better.

And sure enough, her eyes lit up and she grabbed his arm in excitement. "Oh yeah, something really bad," she wholeheartedly agreed.

Logan laughed. He definitely liked how his girl ticked. "Absolutely. Let's check the paper and see if Roy Schneider's still employable," he suggested and pulled her inside his house.

"Is he still acting at all?" Rory asked.

"Dunno. But hey, he gave us Shark. What more can we want?" Logan asked with a shrug.

"Perhaps that he'd stopped acting when he still had a face?" Rory countered.

"He's not that bad," Logan defended Schneider. "Sea Quest for example was quite good and interesting."

"Are you kidding?" His Ace turned incredulous eyes on him. "A talking dolphin, a young, sexy genius being on a submarine while being seventeen and not forget the black, but undoubtedly hot second in command being little Mister Perfect? This show was so cliché!"

"Maybe. But it was still good. And you've got to admit, it was funny," Logan insisted.

"The mock factor was high," Rory muttered.

"But you still watched it, didn't you? Every single episode. I mean, how else would you know the show so well?" Logan pointed out, grinning.

"Well, I do believe one can only mock what one actually knows," Rory replied haughtily.

"Whatever you say, Ace," Logan said, his grin widening. This was so clearly his win, there was no need to boast it further. "So, any ideas what you want to see?"

"A few. I'm not sure though if and when the movies I have in mind are playing," Rory nodded, just as they arrived at his dorm.

"No problem. Remember, there's this thing called program," Logan said, opened his door and walked in, already searching for the paper he'd been reading before Rory had shown up. "I think I have a paper over..." He didn't come any further.

"Well, look how long you make a girl wait for you!"

At the voice of his sister, Logan looked up, more than just a little surprised. So far Honor had never come all the way over to Yale just to see him. Actually, he hadn't talked to her in a while so this visit was more than just a little out of the blue. But there she was, sitting on his couch, her eyes laughing at him. Not that he minded. Quite the contrary. Now that she was here he noticed just how much he had missed his big sister. Totally forgetting everything, he quickly moved over to her. "Honor!"

"Do you really think you're worth it?" she teased him.

Ignoring her words he came to a stop in front of her. "What are you doing here?" he wanted to know.

He knew that Honor loved him and probably had missed him as well, but he was no fool. Her being here and waiting for him in his dorm had to mean that something big was up. His sister wasn't exactly known for her patience.

But Honor wasn't yet ready to spill the beans. "Apparently begging for your attention," she jabbed and rose so they could hug. "It's so good to see you," Honor said in her cheerful way she always used to talk like all through high school. But then, she's been a cheerleader. Peppy and cheerful was in the job description for them. Her eyes were serious though.

He smiled back at her. "You too!" he said back, truthfully, holding her eyes.

"Listen, Logan, maybe I should go."

Remembering Rory, he looked back over to her, her words slowly registering. "What?" he frowned. Why would she want to go? And - wait, was he seeing things or did his Ace look kind of down, resigned? Hurt? But what - a light went on like a giant bulb in his head as he realized how this situation must look to her. Damn. "Oh, sorry, God," he hurried to intercept her before she stormed out on him without giving him time to explain. "Rory, this is my sister Honor. Honor, Rory Gilmore," he introduced them, emphasizing the 'sister' a bit.

"Sister? Really?" Her eyes widening, he could see as relief and embarrassment flooded Rory and he had to smile, giving her a knowing and slightly chiding look to let her know that he was perfectly aware of what she had thought there - very unjustified, actually. After all, hadn't they just talked about this? Did she really think he would forget his promise so fast? Though he had to admit, it had looked suspicious, he guessed, him being so pleased to see Honor. "Oh well, it's nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too," Honor replied politely.

His eyes still on his Ace, he noticed with amusement as she flustered, blushing. "Hey, your sister's here. Cool," she rambled.

Letting her off the hook with a last smile, Logan turned his attention back to his sister. "So, what's the occasion?"

"Well, I had to see you and since you never check your e-mail I had to drag myself down and beg Lanny to let me in so I could show you - _this_!" she exclaimed and held up her left hand, the back of it turned towards him.

And there, right on her ring finger, was a silver ring with a big, nice diamond, causing Logan's heart to skip a beat.

"Holy!" His face splitting up into a wide grin, Logan enveloped Honor back into his arms, giving her a tight hug.

"It happened last night," Honor beamed at him and he could see just how happy his sister was about her engagement.

"Oh, Josh finally gave in, huh?" he grinned, happy for her. Besides, it wasn't as if this came totally unexpected. He had awaited this proposal for a while now.

Still, even with expecting it, it was still quite overwhelming. This was big after all. His big sister was going to get married - and he'd get a brother-in-law.

"Oh, stop it. He's lucky I ever looked at him in the first place," Honor joked, her happiness pouring out of every pore of hers.

Yeah, she was right with one thing: Josh was a happy bastard. And he'd better make sure he'd look good after Logan's big sister! "Well, congratulations!" Logan wished Honor again.

She gave a small nod but then her face turned serious. "Listen, I need a favor," she said and pulled him down to sit onto the couch. "I'm going to tell them tomorrow night and I need you there for support," she continued, giving him her pleading, hard eyes.

Logan made a disgusted face. "Come on!" he whined.

No, no, no, he definitely did not want to do this.

But Honor wouldn't have a no. "Hey! I backed you up when you wanted to take a year off school and sail around the world. I wired you the money when you sunk the yacht. I helped pay off the Indonesian Coast Guard!" Honor listed and Logan knew he was in deep shit.

One he wouldn't get out. She was dead right. He owed her.

Damn.

"Okay, okay," he conceded. "I'll be there."

"Oh thank you!" Honor exclaimed joyously and suddenly, Logan didn't minded so much anymore. After all, how bad could it get? "I love you, I love you, I love you!" Honor emphasized gratefully, her eyes closed and her hand keeping a tight hold on him, and he laughed. She always had to exaggerate. One of the few things she got from their mother. "Okay," she said, breathing deeply and opening her eyes again. "Now I can breathe," she added and gave his arm a last squeeze before letting go. "And focus on _you_," Honor said and turned around to settle her eyes on Rory who was timidly sitting at the other end of the couch. "Hi," Honor cheered.

Alarm flags went up in Logan's head. Shit. Of course this had to come also.

"Hi," Rory greeted back, giving a small nod in return.

"Okay, I'm totally blanking. Your name is?" Honor asked and Logan could practically see the hook being thrown out.

Damn, damn, damn - he hadn't planned to throw his poor Ace to the wolves so soon - if at all. Sure, he was certain that Honor would be elated to hear that her little brother had finally gotten himself a girl, just one, but that exactly was the problem.

"Rory," Rory helped Honor out in the meantime. "Rory Gilmore."

But then, there was nothing he could do about that now, couldn't he? He wasn't going to deny that they were together, not in front of his Ace, not to his sister, not ever. "Yeah, Rory's my," he interrupted himself, for a second speechless as he realized that in all that time since they've officially became a couple he had not once let himself even think this word. "...girlfriend," he finished softly, favoring the taste of that so simple, yet oh so meaningful word as he said it for the very first time in his life - well, at least in connection with him and his girlfriend.

Girlfriend.

Oh jeez - girlfriend. He had a girlfriend. His Ace was his girlfriend!

Beside him, Honor had gone very still, turning her head ever so slowly towards him as she gaped at him.

And Rory, he noticed, wasn't much better as she regarded him with a highly amused look. "You okay over there?" she teased, but her eyes were still shining warmly at him. Looked like she had liked to be called his girlfriend very much. "You need a little water? Or a time machine?" she asked and now she definitely was just mocking him.

He'd have to remember to punish her for that later on - now though he first had to face something else entirely: his sister. She was so not going to let him get off the hook so easily.

"I'm sorry, did you say girlfriend?" she half laughed, disbelieving.

He gave her a look. "Yes," he confirmed simply.

Her eyes widened as she comprehended that he was honest to God serious here.

"It's new," Rory threw in helpfully.

"Oh my God!" Honor laughed and turned back to Rory. "I've never heard him call anyone his girlfriend before. Well, Alyssa Milano, but he was ten and in a weird 'Who's the Boss' phase."

Another thing he hadn't yet thought about was the humiliation factor Honor could provide. She did know him since his birth after all. That was a lot of time and a lot of stories he wasn't so keen on his Ace hearing. Alarmed, he jumped up. "Oh, wow, times flies when you're getting pushed out the door."

Honor looked up at him with laughing and slightly evil eyes but she relented anyway. "Okay, I'm sorry." And already she was back at addressing Rory again. "Listen, you _must _come to dinner too."

Panicked, Logan threw his sister a flabbergasted look. Was she crazy?

"Oh, um..." Rory uncertainly mumbled, shooting Logan a glance.

Immediately, Honor used this to try to convince her some more. "No, really. Come. Please come," she insisted. "It'll make it more festive and distracting."

Oh yeah, he bet it would, Logan thought darkly. "We'll see," he clipped in, warning his sister to drop this with a look.

Surprisingly, she listened for a change. "Okay, fine. I have to go," she complied and grapping her handbag, she stood up. "I'll see you tomorrow night. Please don't be late?"

Logan rolled his eyes and spread his arms. "I promise."

Honor willingly moved into his arms and they hugged again. They hugged often and easily. They loved to hug. Growing up in a family where touch was almost nonexistent, the siblings had learned to get all the needed touch from each other.

Letting go, Honor turned a last time to Rory. "Bye Rory," she cheerfully bid her farewell.

Rory was smiling too. "Bye."

Giving her brother a last smile, Honor breezed out of his dorm. Looking after her, Logan chuckled and went over to sit down beside his Ace. "And that is my sister!"

"I like her," she beamed and Logan was glad to hear that.

Of all his family, it was only important to him that Rory liked his sister and vice versa. "Yeah, she's cool," he agreed with a nod.

Her next words though didn't please him as much. "Listen, you do not have to take me to dinner tomorrow. It's a family thing, I totally understand."

It was along the same thought Logan had had - though he doubted that they had the same reasons for it. The more he was surprised when he heard himself contradict her. "No, you should come."

What?

"Logan," Rory hesitated.

But actually - no, he really wasn't keen to throw his poor Ace into the lion's den - but then, there was suddenly this unexplainable urge in him. He wanted the whole world to know that she was his girlfriend now and that included even his family. And bringing her home as his girlfriend sure would ensure that the news but also seriousness of their relationship would spread like a bush fire. Not to mention that he'd have hell to pay from Honor if he'd showed up without his Ace. Besides - he hated to go home and have to face his family. Having Rory at his side would be a nice change for once. Hell, perhaps simply her being there would make impossible happen and they'd actually have a decent dinner with his family.

So he found himself convincing his girlfriend to let him bring her home to meet his parents. Boy, something must really be up with the cosmos, he thought with a grin as he spoke to Rory. "Hey. Boyfriends bring their girlfriends to their family's houses for dinner. It's natural."

Her eyebrow shot up. "How would you know?"

Taking that as a yes, he relaxed and smirked. "I saw it on 'Who's the Boss'," he replied dryly, deciding to deflect all the comments she sure was going to give about Honor's little tid-bit on him by speaking about it first. Which reminded him that they still wanted to go to the movies. He glanced around. "Now, let's find that paper."

Deadpanned, Rory reached behind and next thing he knew she pushed the paper into his lap. Grinning, he turned it around and started to leaf through it to get to the movie program.

Ask and you shall receive.

Who knew it was so practical to have a girlfriend around?

* * *

"I don't believe it!"

"Well, you wanted to see a crabby movie," Logan smirked.

"But not like this! It's a shame, it's a scandal to ruin such a good movie with that - crap!" Rory huffed, agitated.

"Come on, Ace, you knew it was going to be crap. I mean, when are sequels any good?" Logan argued, but smiling. Then again, he hardly had stopped smiling ever since this morning.

"The father of the bride two," Rory fired back, causing Logan to look at her incredulously.

"Are you kidding me? The first one wasn't even that good to begin with but the sequel? I mean, even if you like Steve Martin, that was just so stupid," he protested.

Rory rolled her eyes. "Of course not the remake, silly one, the original with Spencer Tracy and Liz Taylor."

Oh - well, in that case... Logan shrugged.

"And Indiana Jones. The second was quite good as well," she added.

Logan shook his head. "Uh-uh, that stupid blonde was way too annoying, screaming during the whole movie."

"True, but apart of the screaming the movie was pretty good. And then there was..."

"Ace!" Logan called out and startled, Rory interrupted herself to look up at Logan. "What?"

Grinning, Logan stopped them and leaned down to kiss her, wrapping his arm tighter around her. "Just stopped the list-making before it got out of hand," he told her dryly after a minute. "Nothing against your beloved lists but I kind of have other plans with you, you know."

"Oh really?" she breathed in true faked Marilyn Monroe fashion, smiling coyly. "And what would these plans entail?"

"Now if I tell you it would hardly be a surprise, wouldn't it be?" Logan pointed out with a short laugh, resuming their walking. "But I assure you the word 'ravenous' is repeatedly imbedded into those plans."

"Oh boy," she muttered, rolling her eyes - but he did notice that certain glimmer in her eyes that told him that of yeah, his words had hit home.

"Not quite," he whispered, making sure that his breath stroked down her neck.

A slight tremble of his girl in his arm was his reward, coaxing him to give in into temptation right there and then.

But not yet - just a few more minutes, a few Kropogs, and they'd be at his dorm. He could surely wait that long.

Distraction. He just needed a good distraction until then. What were they talking about again? Oh yeah...

"Did you honestly expect Miss Congeniality 2 to be any good, Ace?" Logan asked, returning to their initial topic.

"It had so much potential," she sighed regretfully, making a face. "And all of it wasted with this nonsense."

"Really, Ace, you should know by now that Bullocks just excels at fucking up the sequels. Speed 2 should have been pointer enough for that," Logan reasoned and was delighted to see the door to his dorm come into vision.

Finally.

"Exactly! And just because of that she should have known that exchanging the male main actor is just the doornail to any possible success," Rory nodded vehemently.

"Technically, they didn't exchange him. They simply erased him totally out of the equation," Logan corrected her, slightly quickening his steps. He couldn't wait to see her face when she saw his little surprise waiting in his dorm.

Again a forceful nod. "Yeah, and what was that? How could they dare to simply transfer Eric and him leaving with not even a word to her, huh? It totally ruined the message of the first movie. In movies like this, you get a happy end and that's the end of it. In this case some new friends and a guy who finally saw the light and wanted her, just like she was, sarcastic, dangerous, hilarious and pig-laugh all included. And now this. Ugh! Don't those script writers know anything?"

"I'll be sure to tell them that next time, they should first consult with you," Logan said with a nod, smiling, and stopped in front of his door.

Finally!

She crossed her arms in front of her chest and sent him a singular glare. "Are you mocking me?"

He grinned at her over his shoulder. "I would never."

Her eyes narrowed some more. "You do. Newsflash Huntzberger: if you want to be a happy boyfriend you better not mock your girlfriend."

Opening the door just for a slit, Logan turned around and held up his hands - stepping closer to his Ace all the while though. "Hey, hey, I'm not mocking my girlfriend here," he protested and stopped just when there was not even an inch between them anymore. "I'm merely teasing my girlfriend here," he added, his grin booming as his hands sneaked around her and brought her flush against his body. "And I happen to believe that teasing my girlfriend is a major factor of making this relationship work," he added. "Besides, it's just too much fun to give up on."

She opened her mouth, no doubt to protest, but that was exactly what he had waited for. Leaning down, he pushed his tongue into her mouth and lost no more time: their lips locked together and their tongues furiously dancing, he started to walk back, all the while pulling her with him. His back came in contact with his door and he pushed it open. As soon as they were inside, he turned them around so he could kick the door shut at the same time as his arms moved to capture her against his body and he intensified their kiss if that was even possible, not wanting her to jump at the sound of the door closing. He backed her further into his living room until they were in the middle of it. By the time he got her there he almost had forgotten about his plan.

Almost.

Damn, his girl sure could kiss.

But fortunately, there was still a small part of his brain that hadn't gone up in flame by their passionate kiss and though reluctantly, he eased up their kiss until he gently separated their lips, only to smooth back some lock from her face and giving her a lingering kiss onto her forehead.

"Any more complaints, Ace?" he asked, finding that his voice had deepened considerably.

Rory blinked and her eyes slowly swam back into focus. "Huh?" she murmured.

Delighted, Logan laughed out loud, resisting the strong urge to claim those luscious lips once again as his. Soon enough. But he sure also loved the effect he had on his Ace, something else that was unique with her. Not that he ever had had complaints from his partners. Quite the contrary. And sure, they too had been lost to passion. But never in the way like Rory, so charmingly all consuming and certainly not with him bringing her into this state just with a mere kiss. Hell, with mere words only sometimes.

Then again, to be fair, she could have the same effect on him, no doubt about that.

He wondered if this was simply because she was so different from any other girl he ever had met or if that was just a side effect from being with someone who actually mattered to him. From being with his girlfriend.

Logan felt a soft touch at his lips and focused back to the here and now, or, to be more specific, the deep blue eyes who looked into his with slight curiosity. "You're smiling," she said quietly. "Why?"

He had, had he? Said smile widened. "You," he answered simply and truthfully, the back of his fingers stroking over her cheek. "You're my girlfriend."

An expression he had never seen entered Rory's eyes, something very soft but at the same time strong as well, something incredible warm. He wasn't sure what it was. He just knew that he wanted to see it in her eyes many, many times from now on.

"Twenty-nine," she said so softly that even with only a breath away from her he had to strain to hear her.

"What?" he asked.

Now she smiled and somehow he knew that it just mirrored his. "That was the twenty-ninth times you called me your girlfriend," she mumbled and he could see that she was both pleased and embarrassed.

"You keeping count?" he chuckled. Though really, he should have expected it. If anything, his Ace loved her lists.

"Well no - yes - but just for the moment," she responded and she shook her head. "There's no way I could keep up anyway if you continue to use it as often as you did today. To the ticket seller at the theater, the guy who sold us the popcorn and the drinks, the guy who controlled our tickets, to the people sitting right and left of us, to the waiters and chef in the restaurant, the taxi driver, the..."

"I get the point," Logan interrupted her, laughing. "So what? You happen to be my first girlfriend and as having this prestigious but definitely uncommon position you'll just have to wait out until I grow tired of telling the world, especially the male population, that you, my beautiful Ace, are indeed my girlfriend now."

She rolled her eyes but kept smiling. "Just don't overdo it."

"As if you don't love it hearing me call you my girlfriend," Logan teased and unable to resist any longer, leaned down to gently nibble at her earlobe with his teeth.

But only briefly. He could tell that she hadn't so far taken in her surroundings yet and while he was thrilled to see just how much he could keep her occupied - it was time for her to acknowledge the settings around her - so they could _finally_ move to the real fun part his body so much longed for already.

"Well - I might have an almost ridiculous pleasure at being called like that, that might be true," Rory admitted with a shrug.

"Good, 'cause it will be some time until I get used to it," Logan nodded and looked up, taking a first look around himself, taking in his dorm. With satisfaction, he nodded.

Perfect.

In his arms, his Ace let out a small gasp and quickly, he turned his attention back to her and watched with pleasure how Rory looked around, taking in the dozens and dozens of electric lights that decorated the entire living room, sparkling in a soft, warm glow. It was some of the finest Christmas decoration he could find though he had looked to it that the lights were only white lights and as much all-opportunities-like as he could get. Rory circled in his arms, now loosely wrapped around her, and another gasp escaped her when she could have a peek through the open door into his bedroom where dozens of real candles lit the room and two bouquets in a combination of sunflowers, red roses and white orchids flanked the bed.

"Romantic enough?" he whispered into her ear.

Slowly, she turned back around to him to gape up at him. "But... when... how... Logan!"

He smiled and gave her a light kiss. "You like?" It was more a statement than a question, really, but still, the question was there none the less.

"Like? _Like_?!?!" Rory gasped. "Logan! That's just... I don't know... How on Earth... Logan, it's simply..." Her wide eyes strayed away from his to look around again and she sighed. "Wow."

"I'm glad you like it," he summarized for her and her eyes came back to meet his. "But now, not to ruin the moment, but really, Ace, someone here's quite desperate to have his first official sex with his girlfriend and he really, really would like to proceed to that ravishing part that was mentioned earlier."

For a moment she just stared at him, then she laughed and put her arm around his neck, effectively pressing her whole body against his. "Carry me to your bed?" she asked, but there was a certain glint in her eyes.

Logan made a face. "No way, Ace. I draw the line at turning my dorm into some scene right out of one of those romance novels."

She placed two small kisses just at the corners of his mouth. "You absolutely sure about that?" she asked innocently at the same time as she pressed harder against his body, especially the lower region of his anatomy.

He smirked and kissed the tip of her nose in return. "Baby, the only way I carry you to my bed is if you you've got your legs wrapped around me, straddling me."

"That, Mister, I believe can be accomplished," Rory answered with a smile and within a second, steadying herself with her arms still around his neck, she had pulled herself up and slang her legs around him, her skirt riding up, bringing her center grinding right against the hard length of him.

Taken not only by surprise but also overwhelmed by his exploding need, Logan grunted but his groan was swallowed fully by Rory who had claimed his mouth as hers in as a forceful way as she had just climbed his body.

Holy Shit.

Suddenly, Logan was in quite a hurry to get his girl over to his bed.

* * *

He was already awake quite some time by the time the strays of sunlight peeking through the blinds roused his Ace from her deep and well deserved sleep. She yawned and cuddled closer into his arm before her heavy eyelids lifted enough to gaze at him sleepingly.

"Hey," she murmured.

"Hey," he whispered back, affectionately kissing her between her eyes, causing her to sigh heavenly.

"Dream?" she asked after a while, her eyes fluttering close again.

He smiled. "Nope. Waking up in bed with your boyfriend after officially becoming my girlfriend. And that would be the forty-eight times now, I believe."

"Keeping track?" She smiled.

"For now," Logan answered, stroking over her back.

"Sweet," she whispered and he could feel as she gave his skin under her mouth a feather light kiss. To his luck it happened to be one of his nipples.

Not that that had much effect on him. He had had plenty of action that night and his body was still too tired to react much to such a temptation. Bummer.

"Time?"

Logan turned his head to look at his alarm clock. "Ten thirty. I'm afraid you missed your morning classes," he answered with not even pretending to be sorry about that.

To his delight, Rory just shrugged and cuddled deeper into his body, her eyes closed again. "Doesn't matter. Worth it."

He laughed quietly. "Ms Gilmore, I believe I have a bad influence on you."

One of her eyes opened again to look up at him slyly. "Oh, I have no doubt about that, Mr Huntzberger. But I believe there's also one or two good influences among all the corrupting ones."

"I'm glad to hear that," he chuckled and stole another kiss, this time from the tip of her nose.

"As long as it's vice versa," Rory answered and opened her second eye as well, looking much more awake now. "I believe I've heard Doyle marveling in his jealous and annoyed way over the last article you handed in for the paper - even three days before deadline." She grinned at him. "I'm so proud of you," she mocked but he could also see honesty in her eyes that made his chest tighten with emotions.

Very, very few people had ever told him that they were proud of him. Still, he battled those emotions down and instead tickled her lightly on her left side.

"Hey!" she protested, trying to wriggle away from his tormenting fingers - which was quite impossible, considering that she was pressed against his body.

"I know that I've told you to not, under any circumstances, mention the little guy sleeping with your roommate while being in bed with me," Logan told her, giving her a look.

"You try to live with their relationship or none-relationship 24/7 and you'll start mentioning them time and time again as well," she grumbled.

Logan made a face. "No, thank you very much."

He got a weak pat onto his chest for his comment. "Not fair. No choice."

Grinning, Logan opened his mouth.

Another pat, stronger this time. "Don't you dare to come me with 'Life's not fair'."

"Well, it isn't," Logan insisted anyway, his grin widening.

"It should," she reasoned, summoning up the strength to glare at him. But then her eyes softened and she took a look around the room. "Though I must say, right now life's pretty much perfect," she said quietly, her eyes coming back to his. "The candles burnt down."

Logan nodded. "Hmm. I believe that's their job. Burn down."

"Smartass," she mocked, showing him her tongue. "The wax probably left stains," she added, more serious.

Logan shrugged. "Doesn't matter. I'll get a cleaning crew in to take care of the mess. If there's any permanent damage, I'll pay for it." He kissed her, a real kiss this time, mouth on mouth, tongues teasing each other. "Worth it," he echoed her earlier words softly.

"Hmm, guess so," she complied. "I still can't believe you did all that though - just for me."

"If not for my girlfriend, for whom then?" he retorted back lightly but turned a bit more serious himself. "You wanted special. You deserved special. I wanted to give you - us, special."

_Us. _

That was another word he would have to get used to. Not that it was a terrible chore. Quite the contrary. He liked to think of him and his Ace as 'us'. But then, he never had to consider someone else in all sort of decisions and situations. Finn and Colin didn't count. While they did a lot together, they were each an individual with their own plans - they just happened to be the same ones most of the time. But now, having a girlfriend, he started to realize that he'd definitely would have to coordinate his social life with her. And of course his private life as well. That most of all. Yep, that would probably take some getting used to.

"And boy, you sure managed to do that," Rory said, bringing him out of his musings. "Thank you," she said softly, giving him a kiss of her own.

Logan smiled. "Hey, believe me, Rory, you thanked me more than enough this last night."

"I would sure hope so," she nodded nonchalantly, flashing him a grin that should usually be reserved only for guys. She pulled it off anyway - naturally. "But still, I can't quite believe how you managed to set all this up. I mean, the only time we've been apart yesterday since you asked me to become your girlfriend was when I was taking a quick shower and changed into something more presentable. That hasn't been even an hour!"

Logan just continued to smile.

Frowning slightly, Rory pushed herself up on her elbows. "Really, Logan - how did you manage all this."

Instead of answering, Logan simply reached out and pulled his Ace down for another kiss. "A magician, Ace, never spills his secrets," he finally told her, his lips leaving a trail of kisses down her neck.

"Come on," she breathed and moved slightly to give Logan better access to her neck.

"Not a chance, Ace," Logan snorted, all his concentration on the softness of her skin beneath his lips now though.

"Fine," she pouted and, to his immense frustration, sat up and slid away from him.

"Hey, where are you going?" he asked.

"Getting up," Rory said simply, throwing him an amused look. "Get coffee. Something to eat. Then I'll have to go back to my room, take a shower, change and make a quick trip home."

"Home?" Logan frowned.

"Stars Hollow," Ace nodded.

Reaching out he grabbed her hand and pulled her back to him, despite her resistance. "Stay," he simply said, burying his hand in her hair, bringing her close so he could kiss her and he felt her resolve dying as she relaxed back into his arms.

"Tempting," she sighed, giving him a brief but deep kiss. "But I really can't. I need to get home and as wonderful as I'm sure it would be to skip the afternoon classes to be with you I need to go. We're making a little head's up test for the finals and I can't miss that."

Knowing better than to even try to talk her out of that, Logan saved his breath for the part in her plan he thought he might be able to change. "Then at least stay until it's time to go to your class," he asked, cupping her cheek. "Isn't there some rule that for the first twenty-four hours with your new boyfriend you stay glued together at the hip?" he continued, smirking. "And if not, I'll just issue this rule as of this moment now."

She laughed. "Okay."

Logan grinned triumphantly.

"Seeing that we got together pretty much twenty-four hours and," she continued before he could dwell in his victory and glanced at his alarm clock, "twenty minutes ago, the rule has been met dutifully and not to mention gloriously fulfilled."

Logan's smirk was wiped off his face. "But..."

Leaving another quick kiss on his lips, Rory sat up again with a laugh, patting his thigh. "But gotta say, excellent idea with that new rule," she smirked and got up.

Thinking furiously, Logan's hand shot forward to take hers. "Just a moment, Ace. You still owe me the forty-five minutes you took to shower and get changed," he argumented.

Her eyebrow rose. "Do I?"

"Yep, we definitely weren't joined at the hip then. I think I'd remember that," Logan nodded, feeling victory creeping back in.

Shooting another glance toward Logan's clock, she smiled. "But - we're already twenty-two minutes over the twenty-four hours," she argued back. "Twenty-three."

As fast as it had come, the sense of victory drained out of him again and he scowled at his alarm clock and his girlfriend. Then though, he decided that enough time had been wasted with pillow talk. He took hold of her other hand as well and in one swift move, he had Rory beneath him, trapped by his arms and knees. Not that she put up any fight other than a cute little glare out of piercing blue eyes.

His smirk was back, as was the victory. "That leaves me with twenty-two more minutes, I believe," he informed her and descended down on her, heading straight for her breasts at the same time as he strategically placed himself between her legs. He had had a slow, tender morning sex in mind, but if she wanted it a bit more tasty, fine with him. She still glared at him but at the same time, he could see as her eyes hooded with the sensations he was invoking in her body. "Actually, if I remember correctly, I seem to remember several bathroom breaks we each took yesterday. That should at least give me another twenty minutes, everything summarized," he proceeded to make his point.

"Okay, okay - twenty minutes now and I may be talked into taking the shower here - with you," Rory though didn't give up quite that easily. "And you owe me a double portion of my coffee load, of course, in that case."

"Of course," Logan murmured and his tongue moved down her body.

He had some convincing to do. A shower with his girlfriend was definitely among the first sexual activities he wanted them to do as an official couple.

* * *

"What on Earth happened here?"

At Colin's startled exclamation, Logan's head popped up from behind the couch to see his two best friends standing in the middle of his living room, glancing around in bewilderment. With a shrug he returned back to the task to remove the dozens of plugs from the electric lights.

"Yeah, looks like we've walked straight into Christmas Wonderland," Finn added. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't we just have had Easter?"

"Yep," Logan answered and had to smile when he remembered seeing his Ace on Easter Monday. Needless to say that she wore Easter bunny ears. And nothing else for quite a bit of that day. That was his girl. He truly couldn't wait to see her on July 4th.

"Aha - just wanted to be sure," Finn muttered, taking another glance around Logan's dorm by casually wandering over to his room, taking a peek.

"You're still strictly banned from putting even a toe into my room, remember," Logan warned him without even looking up.

Finn turned around and leaned against the wall beside Logan's room, crossing his arms in front of him. "Looks like you had a candle party in there."

His curiosity piqued, Colin moved over to take a peek into Logan's room as well and let out a low whistle.

"The ban counts for you too," Logan reminded him, still not looking up. Instead, he waited. It wasn't as if he didn't know exactly what they were after.

The rumor of him and Ace becoming a couple should have reached his friends by now. Probably already within hours the previous day. That's why he had turned off his cell phone and, on the first opportunity, remembered to lock his dorm and bedroom door, not to mention unhook the landline.

"Yeah. And since when are you such a fan of flowers?" Colin snorted. "You gonna have fresh flowers on your night tables all the time from now on?"

Logan offered another non-saying shrug. "Flowers are nice."

They'd have to sweat a little if they wanted him to spill the beans. He hadn't forgotten the weekend - or his fight with Finn.

"Uh-huh," Colin responded, unconvinced. He exchanged a look with Finn who studied their unusual quiet but obviously happy mate with piercing green eyes.

Taking a look first at his Australian friend, then at his busy blond one, Colin sighed and moved over to sit onto the couch. He wasn't quite sure what had been said between his friends but from the way Finn had first stayed away and then had mopped around, not to mention Logan's more than just slightly snapped-in-attitude over the weekend, he could tell it hadn't been pretty. But that was their problem to sort out. He was here for something else entirely.

"Say," he started and spread his fingers, stealing a glance at Logan. "There's an interesting rumor flying around campus."

"Really," Logan answered, not giving any sign of knowing what they were after.

"Hmm. A really very interesting rumor indeed," Colin nodded, now openly fixing his eyes onto his friend. "Not to mention very - astonishing."

"Ok," Logan answered, nonchalantly.

"You're not interested in what's flying around the campus in record time?" Colin wanted to know, raising an eyebrow.

Logan shrugged and got up to proceed to start to take down the lights.

"It's about you, you know," Colin told him, watching him closely. "Still not interested?"

"There are often rumors flying around about me. Why should I be interested in this one all of a sudden?" Logan gave back, indifferently.

"It involves you and Rory," Colin baited him.

Logan didn't bite. "Again nothing new."

Colin frowned. "You honestly want to tell me that you're not the least bit interested that the whole campus is buzzing with the news that apparently, you and Rory have hooked up? For good?"

Sighing, Logan let his arms sink and turned to face Colin. "No, not really. Seeing as I let the word about Rory and me out myself I don't really see why I should be interested now in hearing the resulting rumors."

"You..." Colin's voice trailed off to stare at Logan with an open mouth. "You..."

"Yeah, I," Logan nodded calmly and turned back to take down another set of lights.

"Is it true?"

Stiffening a bit, Logan threw a glance Finn's way and found the Australian piercing him with his eyes, his expression deadly serious.

Slowly, Logan let his arms sink again and this time, he turned to face Finn. "You think I'd sent out a message like this if it isn't true?"

Finn didn't exactly answer. "So it _is_ true?"

Logan held his eyes for a long moment. "Yeah," he finally confirmed quietly. "We've had a talk yesterday and Rory's my girlfriend now."

Silence, both of his friend's eyes on him.

"No kidding?"

Logan shook his head, glancing at Colin. "As if I'd joke about something like that. It's official. Ace and I are together. Exclusively. We're a couple. Boyfriend and girlfriend."

Again a very heavy and loud silence stretched between them.

"Wow," Colin muttered eventually.

Logan nodded and quietly went back to take down another chain of lights.

"And that rumor - did you really flat out tell a girl to go get screwed elsewhere, that you're not available anymore and oh, did you really actually threaten her life if she even thought about calling Rory names?"

Raising an eyebrow, Logan looked back at Colin. So that were the current rumors? Hmm... "Not quite. I did tell her I'm off the market and asked her to pass along the message. The word 'screw' was never mentioned. And I didn't threat her life. I just warned her not to badmouth my girlfriend, especially not in front of me, and I did indicate that I would really not like this one bit." He made a face, remembering that stupid bimbo. "But really, she asked for it." He frowned. "And I had to make sure that those stupid girls leave my Ace alone. I don't wont her to have a hard time because of them."

Colin's mouth was open again.

With a shrug, Logan turned back to his work.

"Letting us know about your changed status would have been nice, you know," Colin eventually picked up the conversation again after another long pause.

"I was busy," Logan answered, not looking back this time.

"Too busy to tell your best and oldest friends, who, might I add, have told you for ages now that you and Rory should get together, that you finally got together with her for good and let them find out through the rumor mill instead, not bothering to even pick up the phone when we did try to reach you to see what really was going on?" Colin kept pushing though and Logan could hear that his friend was truly upset over this.

Well, Logan wasn't going to justify himself. "Yeah," he simply answered, giving Colin a relentless look. Seeing the anger but also the hurt in his eyes though, he sighed. "I spent the entire day and night with Rory, Colin. With my _girlfriend_. Believe me, that fact alone had my mind occupied enough," he added, more gently. Making a slight pause, he tensed a bit more again though. "Not that I actually owe you an explanation."

Frowning deeply, Colin opened his mouth to protest probably, but Finn's clipped voice beat him to it. "Colin? Could you leave us alone for a moment, mate?" he asked quietly, pushing away from the wall he still had been leaning against to take a step towards them.

Closing his mouth again, Colin looked from Finn to Logan and to Finn again. Giving a slight nod, he turned and headed for the door. "I think I've forgotten something in our dorm anyway," he muttered as a parting and the door closed softly behind him.

"Okay, Logan, I get that you're mad at me. But don't let it out at Colin. He doesn't deserve that," Finn said bluntly the moment the lock of the door clicked close.

Giving up on the lights, Logan put the chains he was holding onto the coffee table and faced Finn. "Yeah, I'm mad at you, Finn. You had no right to barrel in on me like you had Friday and even less you had a right to make such a scene over something that truly was none of your business," he said calmly. "This is my life and I have to make my own decisions. I don't like to be pushed. You know that. Colin knows that. And yet, both of you just wouldn't let up." He shook his head. "Part of me knows that the two of you really just wanted to help. And I could have lived with an occasional comment or two. But the pressure you two applied, especially over the last couple of months, was just too much." His eyes met Finn's, didn't back down. "And you crossed the line Friday, Finn."

"You were a stupid fool, mate," Finn made his points, not backing down either. "And hurting not only yourself in the process, but also Rory. I couldn't watch this any longer. Someone had to kick your ass for once, so I did. I won't apologize for that." He took a deep breath. "I do admit though that I probably should have waited until I was a bit calmer, so I'd be a bit more rational and convincing and not like the burning missal I've acted like."

"You were a jerk," Logan clarified flatly.

Finn shrugged. "So were you."

"Maybe, but it still wasn't any of your business," Logan pointed out.

"I'm your friend. And I'm Rory's friend," Finn countered. "If you two hurt each other, I can't just stand by and do nothing about it."

With a sigh, Logan shook his head. "Look Finn, I appreciate this, I really do - and I'm not saying that I won't accept any advice or help you or Colin want to give me - but you can't force me to do what you think is right." He took a step forward and briefly glanced into his bedroom where the unique scent that was his Ace still lingered. "This relationship thing is new for me, you know that, Rory knows that - and I honestly have no idea what it will bring me all or how I'm going to be able to take it - but I want Rory and only her, so I'll try my best to make this work between her and me. But you and Colin need to understand that _I_ have to do this, figure all this out. I don't know much about being a couple but I do know that it's supposed to be two and not three or four," he said with a stern look at Finn.

Finn held his eyes and finally gave a slow nod. "That might be true," he admitted. "Can't really say much about it, after all, I've never been in a relationship either. And as you were the first of us to fall, I can't say that I know much about being friends with a spoken for mate. I guess we'll have to set some new rules."

Logan nodded. "That may be a good idea. But I think we'll have to go bit by bit, because, like said, I'm not on known terrain either. For now I can only ask you two to leave us a bit more room. As I'm with Ace now I guess you two will stop at least about that, but you two need to accept that what happens between me and Rory is primarily also our issue to solve and not yours. Give us a chance to work it out ourselves - let me figure out myself what is the problem and what I need to do about it. Like said, I'll appreciate advice - but keep it light."

With a sigh, Finn slowly nodded. "Okay, I guess you have a point there. So I'll try to keep my invaluable wisdom to myself but asked otherwise by yours truly. But you should remember that we three have looked out for each other since we've been in diapers. We can't turn that off just like that."

"Noted," Logan agreed, knowing that that was the best admission he could have hoped for. He smiled, ready to lighten the mood by leaving the serious talk behind. "Besides, believe me, Ace doesn't need you or anyone else to fight her battles. She's doing well on her own. Especially the ass kicking is one of her specialties."

Finn grinned. "Yeah, those silent bookworms are often the real feisty ones. And as I remember her rant after our little prank - yeah well, I think I should have remembered that earlier on." He gave Logan a dirty look. "So you got a spank from our lovely Reporter Girl?"

Logan gave the dirty grin back. "That, my dear friend, is definitely something that stays only between me and my Ace."

"Is that a yes?" Finn fired back, raising an eyebrow.

Shaking his head, Logan laughed. "Finn, you should get used to the fact that I'm not going to talk about my private time with my girl."

"Spoilsport," Finn murmured and looked at him accusingly. "Where's the fun in that? Not to mention that you always have some of the best stories to tell."

But Logan shook his head. "Sorry, Finn, no can do. It's different when you have a girlfriend," he added softly with a small smile.

Oh yeah, so very different - and entirely in a good way.

"Is it?" Finn asked, surprisingly softly as well.

Logan just nodded and turned back to his task of removing all the lights.

"So," Finn said after a moment, back to his usual crazy-wild self. "I say we need to celebrate to mark the remarkable day one of our finest fell to the wiles of a woman. Say goodbye to the good old hunting days and welcome the hopefully equally marvelous time as a faithfully committed boyfriend."

Amused, Logan threw his friend a look. "Oh boy."

"Oh, this will be the party of all parties!" Finn exclaimed excitedly. "So you go tell that lady of yours to dress nicely and be ready for the time of her life by six, no five o'clock. Trust me, never will a newly formed couple have a better celebration party!"

"Wow, Finn, slow down a minute, there," Logan quickly intercepted the Australian's mounting excitement, turning back towards him. "Not that I don't think that a great idea, but Rory and I can't tonight. We'll have to do this party another time." He knew better than to try to talk Finn out of the party - even if that was what he would have wanted. The way he saw it, a party was always a good idea, especially this one.

It would drive the fact that he and Ace were an item now home to the people he was acquainted to better than anything else. Yeah, he thought that party was a really good idea.

"Oh no, mate, you and your girl can go at it like the monkeys another time - or even better, afterwards - if you're still standing then, that's it," Finn protested, giving him a dark look. He didn't like to hear objections to his party plans. Ever.

Rolling his eyes, Logan shook his head. "No, Finn, that's not it - but we really can't. I'm taking Rory home for dinner."

Uncomprehending, Finn looked back at him. "Home?"

"Yeah, home. Like our house back in Hartford? Where my parents live?" Logan reminded him sarcastically.

A frown appeared between Finn's eyes. "Wait - are you saying you're going to take her home to meet your family? Shira and Mitchum? The old fart?" At Logan's nod, his eyes widened. "Are you bloody crazy? Why would you do that? You already that mad at Reporter Girl? What did she do?"

Again rolling his eyes, Logan shrugged. "Hey, as far as I know a boyfriend is supposed to introduce his girlfriend to his parents at one point of the time," he justified himself. "Besides, Honor more or less didn't leave me any choice," he admitted truthfully.

"Honor?" Finn asked confused.

Logan nodded. "Yeah. She dropped by yesterday to show me her engagement ring and blackmail me in coming to dinner today to act as a bummer between the hounds and Josh while they are telling them the news. As Rory was with me at that point and Honor heard about her being my girlfriend she got dragged right into it."

Finn held up his hands. "Whoa, back up a moment there: Honor's engaged?"

Logan smiled, remembering his sister's happiness. "Yeah. Apparently Josh finally found his balls to pop the question."

Flabbergasted, Finn shook his head. "Jeez - we leave you alone for a couple of days and you go commit yourself to a girl while your big sis says yes to the biggest of all questions. What's next? You gonna tell me that the family donates all the money to charity and then goes to live with the Amish?"

At that ridiculous thought, Logan laughed. "Nah, that's it as far as I know."

"It's more than enough," Finn nodded and sighed. "I guess we'll have to have that party another time then. What about tomorrow?"

Logan shrugged. "Fine with me, but I'll need to check with Rory." Finn gave him a look. "What?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Finn shook his head. "Nothing. Well - look at you - already coordinating your time schedule with Reporter Girl."

"Yeah well, she _is_ my girlfriend," Logan simply said, smiling. "Besides, the party's in our honor so I figured perhaps it was wise to see if the other guest of honor is available for the big blast you're planning."

"You're entirely too logic for my taste today, mate," Finn grumbled but then turned serious. "But seriously - you think it's a good idea to lead that sweet girl to those vultures fate dealt you for family?"

Logan sighed. Honestly? He had his doubts if it was that wise. But then, what could he do? He had already asked Rory to come to dinner and his family had been notified also that he wasn't coming alone today. Besides, now that word was out his family would want to see Rory soon enough anyway so they could as well get it behind them tonight. On the other hand, he really would have preferred to have a little more time to adjust himself to the idea of being Rory's boyfriend and all that entailed before bringing her home to meet the sharks. Especially as he still feared that the mere fact of him hooking it up with Rory, a Gilmore none the less, would propel his mother into marriage arrangements for them already.

Meeting Finn's eyes, he shrugged. "Okay, I may not be that sure - but like said, we had little choice. You know Honor: when she wants something, she gets it, she's got that from Dad. And right now she's convinced that me showing up with my girlfriend, a sophisticated society girl even, will avert their attention enough to not give Josh too hard a time." He shook his head. "And she's probably even right with that. Josh and Honor are together for three years already. I'm pretty sure that they already are aware of the fact that sooner or later, they'll get married."

"But you settling down enough to take a girlfriend..." Finn said with realization.

"Exactly," Logan agreed.

"Well, in that case, mate, I wish you good luck," Finn sighed. "You'll need it."

There was nothing else that needed to be said.

* * *

The closer he got to the house he grew up in, well, at least for the little time he hadn't been at boarding schools, the more nervous he got.

By the time he pulled up in front of the big iron gate to punch in the code for it to open he was fairly convinced that he must have been crazy by agreeing to bring his Ace to the figurative butcher bank. What was he thinking? His family wasn't a nice bunch and he was sure that they would probably give Rory the third degree, leaving her a Swiss cheese once they were through with their questioning.

At least that was what he thought they'd do. It wasn't as if he had any previous experience to speak of. Rory was the first girl he ever brought home – at least the first girl he brought home to officially introduce her to his family as his girlfriend. But he was no fool: he knew his family had certain expectations for any girl he was serious about to meet. She had to be from the right family, have enough money of her own, be at least what could be commonly called as pretty, sophisticated and able to dine with the queen of England if necessary and he was sure his mother and grandfather would not stop interviewing her until they knew all they wanted to know about Lorelai Leigh Gilmore the third.

When his family wanted something, they usually didn't stop until they had it and they could be pretty – intense on the way there. Especially his grandfather. He was a real bastard most of the time. And his mother… If she wasn't on the phone with Emily Gilmore planning the wedding before this night was over he'd be very surprised. Not to mention that there was Honor's engagement and his family's reaction to that was bound to not be very enthusiastic – to call it mildly. They never had approved of Honor dating a man that was socially so beneath them, no matter how Honor felt about it.

And Rory had no idea what she was walking into. He hadn't warned her, hadn't even thought about it. First he had still been too caught up in finding himself in a relationship and be perfectly happy about it, then he had to clear the air with Finn and bring him and Colin up to date and before he knew it, it had been six pm and time to go pick up his girlfriend. And for a while then he had forgotten anything but his beautiful girl in blue that had opened the door and taken away his breath – and suggest, once he found his speech again, to go straight to her room and forget everything but getting her out of that dress again.

He pulled up in front of the house and thought grimly that she should have gone along with his suggestion instead of laughing and pulling him out to the car.

His palms getting a bit sweaty, he turned off the motor and got out, throwing an apprehensive look at his family's home. Growing up, he had often thought it a bit intimidating whenever he had done something wrong – which was often. But never had it looked more intimating than right now and never had he felt more nervous about going inside and face his folks. Why was he so nervous? He was just bringing his girlfriend home to meet them for Heaven's sake! And his family may be a bunch of obnoxious snobs but even they had to be completely crazy to not fall in love with Rory instantly.

Which was part of the problem, he reminded himself darkly as he got out of the car.

"Wow," Rory muttered, staring at the big mansion and got out as well.

Growing more and more nervous, now that they were here, Logan patted himself for the car keys. Where the hell had he put them? He had them just in his hands for Heaven's sake! He looked at Rory, instinctively turning towards her for help. "Uh, where are my keys? What did I do with them?"

But Rory was still staring in awe at the house. "Just your parents live here?"

There they were! "Ah, got them," he said and leaned down to pull the keys from the ignition.

He rounded the car to join his girlfriend.

"Well, I certainly hope the drainage is good."

Yeah, sure – wait, what? "Excuse me?" he asked, baffled.

_The drainage?_

She nodded, finally tearing her eyes away from the house to look at him. "Because if it's not good and you have pooling somewhere, you may not know it for months."

He still stared at her as if she were an alien. She had to meet his parents and was worried about their drainage? "I'll be sure to mention that to them."

She regarded him for a moment. "You look nervous," she stated quietly.

"Do I? Huh…" he asked and sagged against his Porsche. Yeah, he guessed he did. He _was_ nervous. This was important. He was bringing Rory to meet his parents and it should be important. And it should be only about them, not them serving as a distraction for Honor. But it was too late for that now. He met Rory's eyes. "I'm just not sure what I got you into," he finally admitted.

She frowned slightly. "What do you mean?"

"Well, my family's not going to take my sister's engagement too well. They can be a little vicious when annoyed." The understatement of the year, but hey, he could hardly tell her that they were all assholes, now could he? She was about to meet them and even if she didn't show it, she must be nervous. The drainage? Come on. Besides, who knew, perhaps a miracle would happen and they wouldn't make an ugly scene because of Honor's engagement with someone they deemed not good enough for her.

Yeah right.

Damn it, just what the hell had he be thinking, bringing Rory with him tonight?

But Rory just smiled confidently at him. "Hey. Relax. You do not have to worry about me at all. Five years of Friday night dinners have prepared me for exactly this moment."

Logan looked at her doubtfully and they started to go up to the house. "Really?" he asked skeptically. He couldn't imagine that anything could prepare anyone for his family on their worst behavior.

"Remind me to tell you about the time my mom climbed out a second story window to get away from my grandmother," Rory just nodded with a sly grin.

"Ah, I will," Logan answered her and felt himself relax. Perhaps everything would go well after all, he thought as he guided her up the stairs to the front door. Coming to a halt in front of it he took a deep breath. "Okay, ready?" he asked Rory – and himself. This was just crazy! This was his home, his family! Why the hell was he so nervous?

Beside him, Rory nodded once more. "Ready."

Right. He was bringing his girlfriend home to meet his parents. That was why he was so nervous. Rory was important for him and he wanted his family to actually approve of her while not going overboard though. He didn't want them to scare away Rory in any way. Was that really too much to ask?

Taking another deep breath, he braced himself and rang the bell. He had a key, but his parents didn't like it if he just walked in, especially if he was bringing over a guest.

The bell had barely finished ringing and already, his big sister rushed out of the door, giving him a big good glare. Uh-oh. Didn't look like things had been going well so far. "You are late!" she accused him.

Logan shrugged. "Fifteen minutes."

"Well, it's awful," Honor complained, giving him another glare. "A morgue! It's like they already know what I'm going to tell them."

"Well, you have been with Josh for three years now," Logan reminded his sister.

But Honor shook her head, miserably. "I don't understand it! I called and told them that you were coming because that usually makes Mom happy. And I told her that you were bringing Rory so they'd be on their company behavior, but from the minute Josh and I walked in that door it's been iceberg cold! Josh has completely panicked. Shaking," she emphasized.

Shit. Looked like it was worse than he had dreaded. "Wow… Sorry," he offered but wished he could just take Rory and hightail it out of here.

"Don't be sorry," Honor told him sourly. "Just get in here and stop it," she demanded, turned on her heel and marches back inside.

But of course, he had promised Honor. He sighed, long and suffering. Damn sibling responsibility.

"Hmm. Remind me to tell you about the time my mother wore a shirt with a rhinestone penis on it and my grandma had her car towed," Rory told him dryly.

He gave her an incredulous look but at the same time felt a rush of deep gratitude for her being there with him that warmed him from the very inside of him. Feeling more ready, he led the way through the door, heading straight towards the living room where his family surely was gathered.

Rory though stopped just inside, staring around with big eyes. "Look at the ceiling!"

The ceiling would have to wait or Honor would rip off his head. "Come on", he urged her and grabbed her hand to drag her with him.

"Have you seen this ceiling?" Rory just asked in awe, her head still tilted upwards.

"Hurry!" Honor called.

Or perhaps his big sister would just forget about his head and go straight for his balls. Logan quickened his steps and tentatively entered the living room, keeping Rory's hand firmly in his hand.

They all looked up with various expressions.

"Well, look what the cat dragged in," his mother greeted him with a forced smile.

"Sorry, we're late, everyone," Logan apologizes and reluctantly let go of Rory's hand to walk over to his mother.

"It's all right, Logan. We're still waiting for your father," his mother told him as he kissed her on the cheek.

Well, at least something, Logan though with a silent sigh and moved on to his grandfather, who sat in his leather chair, grimly. "Hey Grandpa, nice to see you," Logan greeted him, shaking his hand.

"Did you get those books I sent you?" his grandfather asked gruffly.

Nope, he sure wasn't in the best mood. Or a good one at all. Then again, Logan couldn't remember the last time his grandfather had been in a good mood.

"I did, thank you," Logan said and went over to Honor and Josh, shaking his clammy hand as well. "Hey, Josh, it's been a while, you're looking well," he tried to sooth his soon to be brother-in-law.

"You too," Josh mumbled, looking relieved and worried as hell at the same time.

Sighing inwardly again, Logan returned to Rory's side and touched the small of her back, more to remind himself that he was not alone in this hell than for anything else. He faced his family. "Everyone, I'd like you to meet Rory Gilmore."

Rory smiled shyly. "Hi. It's really nice to meet you all." Logan guided her over to the free sofa. "This house is amazing," Rory said to his mother as they sat down. "Seriously, there should be a docent at the door," she tried to lighten things up a bit.

"Well, thank you, Rory," his mother answered with a false smile.

Of course, for Rory to manage to lighten things up, his family first had to develop a sense of humor. "You know Rory's grandparents, Mom, Richard and Emily," he said to his mother, knowing that she would probably response better to that.

"Yes, of course," his mother nodded. "How are Richard and Emily doing?" she asked Rory politely.

"They're doing very well," Rory answered as politely.

"Oh, that's wonderful," his mother claimed with another of her false smiles and an awkward silence descended upon the room, the only sound penetrating it coming from his grandfather swishing the ice cube in his drink around, glaring darkly into it.

Jesus. Honor had been right. This was worse than usual.

"So, um, you were at the wedding, right?" Rory broke the silence.

His mother nodded. "Oh… Why, yes. We were. Oh, it was lovely. Emily certainly knows how to plan an event," she added.

Rory nodded. "That she does."

"I should send her a note," his mother remarked.

Again, Rory nodded. "Hmm."

And they fell into awkward silence again. Logan noticed Rory glancing over at Honor who mouthed an introduction of Josh back at her which prompted the two to wink at each other while the ice cube in his grandfather's glass kept swishing around loudly. Desperately, Logan tried to think of something else to say.

Another click of the ice cube against the glass.

Right!

He got up. "Hex, Grandpa, can I refresh your drink for you?" he offered. His grandfather grunted but gave him the glass.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Can we get you something, Rory?" his mother turned to Rory, questioningly.

"I got it, Mom," Logan answered for Rory, already over at the bar and mixing his grandfather another drink, making one for himself as well. If he had to endure dinner as well he definitely needed alcohol to get through it. The others had fallen silent again.

Hopeless.

Finished with the drinks, Logan brought one over to his grandfather and then sat back down beside his Ace again, handing her her drink.

She leaned over to him. "Oh, Logan, I don't think I should…" she started to whisper.

"It's club soda, Ace," he whispered back.

"Oh, good," she muttered relieved.

The maid came in and carried a tray over to his mother with a message on it and Logan cheered silently. Looked like his father wouldn't make it in time, once again. That meant they could move over to the dining room and start eating and perhaps, if they got lucky, his father wouldn't show up at all. While his father undoubtedly wouldn't allow this damn, uncomfortable silence, Logan preferred it much to his father's false cheerfulness.

Sure enough, his mother nodded resigned after reading the note. "Apparently, Mitchum is still at the office. We might as well start dinner." She stood up. "So…" She gestured for everyone to follow her.

Across them, Honor took Josh's hand. "Come on, you'll feel better when you had some food," she assured him.

"I'll feel better when we're leaving," Josh pointed out as they got up.

Logan helped up Rory as well and Honor joined them. "So sorry," she apologized to Rory. "We owe you one."

That she could say out loud.

But Rory just shook her head, smiling. "No." Honor smiled back at her and dragged Josh after her to the dining room. Logan and Rory followed them, but soon, Rory stopped, staring at the Velazquez. "Is that a Velazquez?" she asked incredulously.

Somehow, he wasn't surprised at all that Rory had recognized the painture on the spot. But the Velazquez would have to wait as well. Perhaps, after dinner, they could sneak away and Logan could give her a tour. He'd bet she'd keel over in awe when he showed her the first edition of Hamlet his grandfather owned. Yeah, that would be nice. Later though. "Come on," he urged her.

"It is! That is a Velazquez," Rory exclaimed as he dragger her on. "This house is so cool!"

Logan grinned. Oh, she should wait until she saw the Rodin in his room.

When they got into the dining room, he noticed that the set for his father had already been removed and his mother and grandfather had taken up the heads of the table while Josh and Honor had seated themselves on one side of the table, leaving Logan and Rory the places on the other side. He helped Rory into her chair and then sat down himself, hoping that at least the food would soon be served. The faster this dinner was over, the better.

For once, his wish was answered and the maid started to bring in the soup. Once they all had their plates, Logan turned towards his grandfather. "So, Grandpa, how is the new boat?" he made a try for conversation.

"It's a boat. It floats."

So much for a conversation. But heck, he could still try again, could he? It wasn't as if it could get any more uncomfortable. "I hear it's beautiful. When are you going to let me take her out?" he asked.

But of course, his mother had to ruin his attempt. "Now, Logan, you don't have the best track record when it comes to boats."

Oh, for Heaven's sake! Sink one boat and you'll get to hear about it for the rest of your life. And it wasn't even him who had sunk the boat but Finn.

"Only other people's boats. Our boats are very safe," he assured with a crooked grin.

"We should do a summer trip," Honor suggested, looking over at Logan and Rory. "Maybe hit the Amalfi Coast again? All of us, Rory, Josh, you, me."

Before Logan had a chance to answer her, his grandfather slammed down his fork forcefully, startling everyone.

"Dad," his mother chided.

"Maria!" his grandfather just bellowed.

Maria appeared quietly. "Yes, Sir?"

"It's too hot," he complied. "Bring me a salad."

Maria disappeared quietly again and his mother got up, hurrying out of the room.

Across him, Honor mimed smoking a cigarette and Logan grinned.

"What?" Rory whispered confused to him.

He leaned closer to her. "Mom's a stress smoker," he explained.

"Oh," Rory said, but her tone suggested that she still didn't quite get it. Then again, he couldn't blame her. "I don't understand why everyone's so upset. Josh seems fine," Rory said quietly.

Logan shook his head, grimacing. "The Huntzbergers aren't interested in fine," he stated. She was right, Josh wasn't bad. And what was the most important thing, he truly loved and respected Honor. But his family didn't care about that. They only cared about their precious status.

"Shira!" his grandfather bellowed, startling everyone again.

"Yes, Dad?" his mother called back, not showing up though.

"What time did Mitchum say he'd be here?" his grandfather wanted to know.

His mother came back inside, coughing a bit and waving the smoke away before she sat down again. "I don't know. He didn't say."

"Well, this is ridiculous," his grandfather grunted.

"Please, Dad," his mother pleaded and Logan braced himself for the storm he knew was coming.

"We're all just going to sit around this table and pretend there's nothing going on?" his grandfather sure enough demanded to know.

"Let's just wait for Mitchum!" his mother tried to calm down his grandfather again, the stress showing in her face. She hated confrontations as Logan knew only too well. His mom preferred to rather talk behind peoples back and badmouth them cruelly than to confront anyone.

"There are serious matters to be discussed here," his grandfather just continued though, glaring. "This is an important family. Marrying into it is important business. But no, we can't discuss this until Mitchum gets here!" Maria chose that moment to bring him his salad and he stared down at it with disgust. "What is this? Go away!" he ordered, furiously.

Maria quickly hurried out and Logan spoke up to defend Honor's choice. "Okay, I'm sorry. I have to jump in here. Grandpa, we all respect you and Mom and Dad, but the bottom line here is, Honor has to be happy," he emphasized, even if he knew he would probably fall on deaf ears. "Now, if she loves Josh, then…"

"Logan, I appreciate you defending me but I can take it from here," Honor interrupted him and looked at their mother and grandfather. "Mom. Grandpa. I had hoped that you would be happy for me, but obviously, that's not going to happen," she said and sadly, but not surprisingly, there wasn't even a trace of hurt in her voice. They both knew to not except anything from this family. "You didn't even let me announce it to you before you formed your opinion, and I'm sorry you feel the way you do, but Josh and I made it official last week. We are engaged now and no matter what you say, we are going to get married. In June," she stated, firmly.

To everyone's surprise, their mother just rolled her eyes, taking a sip of her wine. "Well, of course you're going to get married," she said, uninterested. "You've been dating for three years, and I already put a hold on the Japanese Tea Garden for next spring."

Honor, Josh, Logan and Rory just stared at her, completely thrown by this news. But Honor recovered quickly. "Oh… Well, that sounds great. Thank you!" She knew better than to insist on a wedding in June, now that they had their okay.

Still surprised at the easy acceptance, Logan grinned, relieved as well. "So we should celebrate then!"

"We'll celebrate when we have finished our discussion!" his grandfather though hissed.

Confused, Honor looked at him. "Which discussion?"

"The discussion about unsuitable people marrying into this family," his grandfather answered, balefully.

"What?" Honor asked, perplexed, and Logan was right there with her. If they had already accepted Josh marrying Honor, then where the hell was the problem?

"I'll be right back!" His mother uttered and rushed out, undoubtedly going for another cigarette.

What the fuck was going on here?

"You should know better than this Logan!" his grandfather turned to him and surprised, Logan's head snapped around to stare at his grandfather. What? "I know you like to joke around and tease us but I always thought at the end of the day, you understand what your responsibilities to this family were!" his grandfather continued.

Staring another moment longer at him incredulously, Logan got a real bad feeling. No. No… they couldn't… the wouldn't… But of course they would. His eyes narrowed. "Mom!" he called sharply. "I suggest you come back in here, right now!" he demanded, fury quickly spreading through his veins. He kept a lid on it though. His family may behave like rotten bastards, but he sure as hell wouldn't follow their example.

His mother appeared in the doorway. "Logan, you just haven't thought about this," she said to him, nervously. "I mean, I'm sure Rory understands," she then offered, confirming Logan's worst fear. Those damn, obnoxious assholes! "She wants to work. Isn't that right, Rory?" she turned to a completely shocked and flabbergasted Rory. "Emily's always talking about you wanting to be a reporter and travel around doing this and that." She turned back to Logan. "A girl like Rory has no idea what it takes to be in this family, Logan."

Tensing with white hot rage, Logan shook his head. "Oh my God." He just couldn't believe it that they really disapproved of Rory! She was a Gilmore for God's sake! And then to even say anything against her with his Ace sitting right there… He just couldn't believe it! That was extreme even for his family.

"She wasn't raised that way," his mother continued. "She wasn't bred for it. And this isn't at all about her mother," she quickly assured and Logan felt Rory tensing beside him, her mouth open in silent shock. He remembered only too well how hurt she had been after her grandfather's funeral and the cold treatment she had received there. Fuck, fuck, fuck! And he had brought her right into the lion's den. "It's just, you come from two totally different worlds." His mother was still talking.

"It would never work!" his grandfather joined in as well, staring intently at Logan. "Not for you, and certainly not for us!"

Logan glared back at them. "Okay, this conversation is going to end right now," he said tensely. "I'm not going to sit here…"

"You are going to be taking over this company!" his grandfather just continued as if Logan hadn't spoken at all. "That's what you are going to be doing! And when you do, you are going to need the right kind of person at your side. This isn't college, Logan!"

As if he didn't know that! And as for Rory, who would better fit at his side than her who loved that business he was born into so much and went after it with so much enthusiasm? She would be one of the best oversea correspondents this nation had ever seen and his family should beg for her to work for them and not the concurrence!

"And whatever happened to that Fallon girl? I loved her," his mother sighed. "Do you talk anymore?"

The Fallon girl? Oh… yeah. The party in New York and the blind date his mother had organized for which he had to cancel on Rory – hurting her. His eyes narrowed. "No, we don't talk! We never talked, _you_ talked," he snapped, feeling his control slipping.

His mother had the nerve to sigh again and shook her head sadly. "Oh, what a shame. I just loved her."

That was it. He was not going to continue to sit here and let his family attack and hurt his Rory! Not to mention that he was going to kill somebody if they didn't get out of here. He got up and turned to Rory. "Okay. Let's go."

Rory quietly got up and followed him.

His mother called after him, desperately. "Logan! You have to understand! You bring this girl home without any warning at all, and Honor tells us you're calling her your girlfriend! We have to take that seriously. Logan! Come back here!"

All Logan did was quicken his steps, his hands balling to fists. How dare they treat his Ace like that? What were they thinking? And what had he been thinking bringing Rory to meet them? Or even that he would have to worry about his family obsessing about them getting married when in truth they actually didn't want them to marry at all. But then, what had he expected? There he finally found a girl he was crazy enough about to want to commit to her, a girl that was simply breathtaking, a girl he very well could imagine spending his entire life with her, and he had really thought that his family would actually like her as much as he did?

Idiot. He was an idiot.

"I don't understand," Rory said, looking at him in confusion and it was easy for him to see the hurt in her eyes. Hurt his family had caused. Hurt that he had caused by bringing her here. His heart clenched. He would never forgive them for this.

Not for this.

"They're psychotic," he told her bitterly. "What more is there to understand?"

"But why don't they think I'm good enough?" she asked and there was that pain in her voice again that just cut right into his heart and twisted his gut.

He felt his rage growing even more. "Rory," he just said, too furious to say anything more. She needed to understand that this was not her fault, that she had done nothing wrong. It was his family that were the crazy bastards.

But apparently, she hadn't understood his meaning. "I mean, I'm a Gilmore. Do they know that? My ancestors came over on the mayflower!" she pointed out, her eyes still wide with disbelief.

He held out her coat, urging her to slip inside it. "Don't try to analyze it, there's no rhyme or reason," he told her impatiently. He had to get out of here before he went back and really lost it!

Rory slipped into her coat but still mused about his family's unacceptable behavior. "I had a coming out party! I went to Chilton, and Yale, and why are they okay with _Josh_?" she asked, turning towards him and looking at him with that big, hurt, blue eyes. "I mean, he doesn't even say anything! At least _I_ noticed the Velazquez!"

He held her eyes. "Josh isn't marrying the heir to the Huntzberger fortune," he told her straight out. "_You are_."

She stared back at him, wide eyed and speechless and he grew aware of _what_ he had just said. Oh hell. He had just implied that they were going to marry, had he? How on Earth had that happened? They had just gotten together and here he was already talking about them marrying as if it was a fact? Dimly, he noticed the front door opening. As the door bell hadn't rang he was pretty sure that this had to be his father. Great. Just great. The biggest lunatic of them all. He rubbed his forefront, feeling a headache coming. "I've got to get out of here," he muttered and true to his word, turned towards the door, only to be greeted by the sight of his father coming in.

"Logan, perfect," he greeted his son with a smile. "Did they start dinner? Is it some sort of precious fish dish? 'Cause I'm dying for a steak," he continued casually, walking over to them. He smiled at Rory. "You're Rory I assume. Heard a lot about you," he said and shook her hand.

To anyone, it would look as if he was truly pleased to meet Rory. But Logan was no fool and he knew his father. He may act nice, but he was way worse than his grandfather and mother together. Surely, they wouldn't have behaved like this if his father wouldn't actually disapprove of Rory as well. Hell, his father was a good strategist, always playing his little games. Probably, he had come late on purpose so the two others could fall over Rory like the hyenas they were.

Bastard.

Fueled with new rage, Logan straightened and stared him right in the eyes. "We're leaving," he told him icily.

His father had the nerve to raise his eyebrows in surprise. "What? Why?"

"You know why," Logan just told him flatly.

"I had a long day, Logan," his father sighed. "I don't want to play games. Is dinner over?"

"No. The Huntzberger family Shanghai is over," Logan answered bitterly and gestured towards the dining room. "Dinner however is still going on."

"Oh, okay. Okay, what happened?" his father muttered, still acting confused and walked towards the dining room. He stopped and turned back to Logan. "Oh, no. Why is your mother smoking?"

Logan just shook the head, disgusted. "We have to go. I'm sure they'll fill you in on everything," he said sarcastically and true to his word strolled to the door, leaving without another glance backwards.

Rory followed him shortly after and nearly had to run to keep up with him as he headed for his car. He just had to get away from there and try to forget what had just happened.

"Logan! Logan, wait!" Rory finally called and he slowed down enough for her to catch up.

"Come on, hurry," he simply told her and giving him a look, she matched his stroll. Reaching the car, Logan wordlessly held the passenger door open for her to get in before he slammed it shut. He didn't bother with the door for himself and just jumped in in his hurry to leave.

Without uttering one word, Logan sped out of the gates and turned to head straight back to Yale. Truthfully, he didn't trust himself to speak. He was still way too angry for that and he knew Rory wouldn't want to hear him cursing and damning his family to hell. But he was also angry with himself, for bringing Rory with him in the first place, for expecting that just for once, his family wouldn't ruin something he actually cared about. And how could he have been so stupid to forget just what damn snobs his folks where? He had truly believed they'd love Rory, first, because she wasn't pregnant, second, because she was a Gilmore and a Hayden and so more than suitable for him and third, because she _was_ so interested in the news business as she was.

But no, of course they only cared about her actually wanting to work and not just sit around and spend the money for stupid and useless things like his mother did. And of course not to forget that her mother had dared to leave society to go raise her daughter, a bastard, on her own, ensuring that she wasn't _bred_ like a granddaughter of Richard and Emily Gilmore should have been raised.

Bred.

He couldn't believe his mother had actually really used that word! They were in the twenty-first century and she came and claimed his Ace wasn't good enough for this family of assholes and bitches because she wasn't _bred_ for it?!?!

Jesus!

And even worse, all that with Rory sitting at their dining table right there, his guest, his _girlfriend_! He brought her home so they'd meet her and they did their best to scare her away because they automatically assumed that that meant they were to get married? How crazy was that? And how could he ever right this terrible wrong his family had done by her? Hell, he could be glad if she didn't just call it off with him so she'd never have to have it to do with this lunatics again!

She wouldn't break up with him over that, wouldn't she? She had to know that he wasn't okay with anything that had happened that night, that he didn't share his family's opinion in the slightest. Not good enough! Ha! If you asked him, she was too good for them! And for Heaven's sake, she was a _Gilmore_! What on Earth would happen if Richard and Emily heard of how badly their granddaughter had been treated by his family? They couldn't forbid her to date him, could they?

No, no, of course not. And even if they did, he doubted Rory would go along with it. She wasn't like that. She wasn't raised like that after all, he reminded himself bitterly. That was of course if she still would want to be with him.

God, if his family scared her away with their little scene back there he'd never forgive them! Never! And if they thought that he was going to break up with Rory because they didn't approve then they were in for a surprise. If anything, he was going to marry her one day even more likely now. Because anything those fools didn't want for him would just be the right thing for him.

Especially his Ace, he thought grimly, his grip on the wheel tightening.

What did his family think? That beautiful, intelligent, rich, well-mannered girls who could manage to keep him on his toes and capture his heart were growing on every tree? He probably would never again meet a girl as perfect for him as his Ace!

Of course it was way too soon to even think about marriage. They had just gotten together for good after all.

But still…Something told him that this girl could be the One, if something like that even existed. And he would rather turn his back onto his family than letting his Ace get away again, now that he finally had her.

If he still had her. He had brought her with him, leading poor Rory like a lamb to the slaughterer. Then again, he truly had believed he would rather have to worry about his family wanting them to marry on the spot than that they couldn't like her. What was there not to like after all? She was breathtaking, super intelligent and even from old blood, older than the Huntzbergers in fact! So what if she was born out of wedlock? So what if she wanted to work? She was still the loveliest girl you could imagine! Not that they gave her any chance at all. They had no idea how she was, just her circumstances and background on paper and that was enough for them to damn her as unsuitable!

God! If he ever had needed a proof that his family was just plain crazy…

But now that he thought about it, he remembered that that time when the Gilmores had thrown a meat market party for Rory, his mother had already made some comments about Rory's situation. Why had he forgotten that? If he hadn't then he would never have taken her along with him and she would have been spared this terrible scene and the pain it must have caused her. Pain he caused her with his thoughtlessness.

Damn it.

It was just that when you got to really knew his Ace, then you couldn't imagine anyone not loving her right from the spot. She just was that kind of person you instantly liked. And even if her mother had been a teenage mother and Rory's parents had never married, she was still the oldest daughter of both the Gilmore _and_ Hayden heir, making her the ultimate heir to both fortunes. How could anyone of those preposterous people in high society think that that was not good enough for them?

He pulled into his parking lot and blinked, surprised that they were already back. He had barely noticed the way, had just driven on autopilot. Then again, he probably had broken not just one speed limit in his hurry to get away from the psychos that were his family.

Glancing over he felt his heart twist again at the sad expression on his Ace's face. It just wasn't fair. They had just gotten together yesterday and while he sure was no expert in relationships, he did believe that a fresh couple should be in seventh heaven, not in the ninth gate of hell, especially on only the second day.

Still not able to speak, this time more out of guilt than anger, he got out and helped her silently out of the car, starting to walk her back towards her dorm.

And it was all his fault. His family's more but in the end, it was _his_ family and _he_ had brought her to them to be badmouthed right into her face. Perhaps she would be better off without him and all his baggage than with him and having to deal with all the obnoxious people his life was filled with, simply by being born into a society that surely had its advantages – but there was always as well a price for that. Yeah, perhaps Rory's mother had done the only right thing to do by getting her daughter out of there before it was too late and Rory was best of staying away from them as she had done so before she had met him. And perhaps, he should be selfless for once in his life and let go of his Ace before he got her hurt even more.

But just at the thought of losing his Rory, he felt his gut twist in cold dread, much like the day before when she had come to tell him that it was over. He may have been truly together with her barely thirty-six hours and still, he strangely couldn't imagine his life without her already. He liked being with her, he loved being her boyfriend and he didn't want to give up all that – happiness he had found with his Ace.

Then again, if she truly meant that much to him and he wanted her happy, then shouldn't he simply do what was in her best interest and not his? And sadly, that would mean to break up with her so she could go back to her life in that small town of hers, to her books and to her own friends with families who wouldn't judge her just based on her heritage.

They came closer to her dorm and Logan stopped when he saw light in the window, groaning silently. Great. Paris was there. Another lunatic and just another person who disapproved of him dating Rory. Only that she was against them out of the right reasons, of course. Burying his hands deep in his pockets he thought for a moment and finally turned to Rory. He couldn't support Paris right now. And he had to think, decide what he wanted and what he needed to do about this fucked up situation.

"So… Okay if I just drop you here?" he asked his Ace quietly.

"Drop me here?" she repeated confused.

He glanced at her dorm. "Yeah, lights are on, Paris is home. I've had about all the crazy I can for one evening," he briefly explained.

Her face fell a bit and the sadness in her eyes deepened. "Okay. Sure." She was quiet for a moment. "You know, we don't have to go in, we can go get something to eat," she suggested, hopefully.

He hated to do it, but he crushed that hope. "I'm not hungry," he said with a shrug, avoiding to look into her eyes, not wanting to see the hurt there.

"Okay," she said quietly.

"I just want to walk a little, clear my head," Logan offered. A lame excuse, he knew it, but he was too tired to give it much effort.

"Okay," she said quietly again, but he could still hear her disappointment over it.

Suddenly needing to get away from her as well, especially that disappointment, he gave her a quick, light kiss. "I'll call you later," he mumbled and hurriedly turned and started to walk away.

"Tomorrow?" she called after him.

He looked up and slowed down a bit. "Uh, yeah, tomorrow," he sighed and then got the hell out of there.

It was the least he owed her, he guessed. Even if it was only to tell her that it wouldn't work between them and that they should call it quits before either of them would get hurt too much. He snorted bitterly. Ha. As if it wasn't already too late for that. It sure as hell would already hurt him almost physically to break up with her and there was no question that Rory had had to endure quite a lot already since she had hooked it up with him. And that when all he wanted to do was to protect her.

Yeah right. That was why he had taken her with him tonight, delivering her unwarned and unprotected to the sharks out for her blood.

Spotting a lonely spot under a tree, Logan headed over and lowered himself to sit on the ground against the tree, putting his head into his hands.

He didn't know what to do now. He didn't know how he could ever look into Rory's eyes again after how his family had treated her, he didn't know what to do with his rotten family and he especially didn't know what to do about Rory.

He didn't want to lose her.

But neither wanted he to be the cause of her being hurt again and after tonight he had no doubt that if he stayed together with Rory as he wanted to desperately, then his family would continue to try to break them up, doing their best to get rid of his Ace. And he knew his family well enough to know that they could get really cruel. Hell, that dinner had been the best example for that but he knew that they could do worse. He especially feared whatever his father would try. The open disapproval of his mother and grandfather was worse enough but at least with them, you knew what you had coming and could prepare for it – if it didn't get you by surprise like it had earlier on. With his father though… He was a sneaky bastard, loving it to have you think all was great and then wham, he would deliver you a blow that could crush you. The last thing he wanted was for Rory to ever have to have it out with his father.

Groaning, he buried his head even deeper in his arms.

God, how he sometimes hated his family! And the worst thing? If he really broke up with Rory to protect her from them, they would still win in the end and have gotten just what they wanted, regardless of the reasons why he let go of his Ace.

Another unbearable thought.

Then again, perhaps he didn't have to worry about that at all. In Rory's place, he surely would have second thoughts about dating him after all that had happened and the way she had been treated by his family. So perhaps, his family would simply win by having managed to convince her to break up with him – again.

Even though they technically hadn't been together before. Still – just because Rory had already been ready to break it off with him only yesterday he was fearing it even more now with what had happened with his family.

His cell phone rang and by the ring tone he new that it was his sister. Sighing deeply, he contemplated not to take it. But he knew Honor. She wouldn't give up until she had reached him, and if it took all night. Hell, he wouldn't put it past her to show up in his dorm again. Besides, it wasn't her fault that they had such a rotten family. Letting out another groan, he answered the call. "Yeah."

"I am so, _so_ sorry," she immediately said. "I swear, I had no idea."

"It's not your fault," Logan said quietly. He had never blamed her.

"Still – if I hadn't begged you to come and even urged you to take Rory along, babbling to Mom about you finally having a girlfriend for real…"

"Then they would have simply done this the first time I'd have thought of taking her home to meet them as my girlfriend, which would have been soon enough after word has gotten out about it," Logan interrupted resigned. "They made it perfectly clear what they think about me being serious about Rory tonight and we both know that nothing would have changed their opinion."

"I still can't believe what they did, though I don't know why I'm surprised," Honor said after a moment.

Logan didn't answer.

"I mean, she's a Gilmore! And is it true that she wants to become a reporter?" his sister wanted to know.

"Yeah," Logan answered. "And a damn good one at that."

He could almost see her shaking her head. "I don't get it. What's their problem? She's from a good family, she's rich, she's interested in our business, she's quite beautiful, what more do they want?"

Again, he didn't answer.

"Plus, she's clearly totally crazy about you," Honor continued her rant. "And even more important, she managed to get you, Mister Casanova himself, to commit to her and now that is really something to say for her."

At this he listened up. "You really think so?"

"What? That it is quite a task to get you to settle down? Sure I am," she remarked dryly, sounding as if that went without comment.

"No – about her feelings for me," he corrected her.

Honor was silent for a moment. "Logan – Rory is crazy about you. It's easy to see. You just have to look at how she's looking at you," she told him quietly.

It was?

"It's the same how you look at her," Honor added after a moment, even more quietly. "Even a blind one could see that you're really crazy about her as well."

Oh yeah?

"Logan? What goes on in that head of yours?" Honor wanted to know, suddenly suspicious.

"Nothing," he quickly denied.

Another boot of silence.

"Jesus, Logan, you're not really thinking about giving in to them, are you? You can't be taking what they think about that sweet girl seriously!" his sister ranted. "Forget what they said. She's perfect for you and you'd be a damn fool to let her get away again!"

"I know," Logan defended himself. "And of course I'm not caring about what they think," he pointed out, slightly hurt that his sister would even suggest such a thing. "It's just…"

"It's just what? You suddenly don't want to be with her anymore?" Honor asked sarcastically.

"Of course not!" he flared up. "But let's face it Honor, with them standing where they are, they are not going to give up before Rory and I break up. You know them as well as I do and you've seen how they were when you started dating Josh. And you're not the heir, Honor. You've heard them yourself: I'm supposed to take over and apparently that means I need a stupid trophy wife," he reminded her bitterly. "It doesn't matter what I want, not for them. The least I can do is protect Rory from them and their dirty little games. But the only way I can think of to do that is by not seeing Rory anymore."

"Come on, Logan, that's just what they want!" Honor argued.

"I know!" Logan hissed. "But I'm not going to let them hurt her like they did tonight ever again, even if it means that I have to give up on her."

"Oh, for Heaven's sake," Honor groaned. "Logan, you let that girl get away and it won't be some noble, sacrificing gesture, it will be plain stupidity. Nothing else. Besides, I think Rory has a word to say about that as well and I can't believe that she agrees with you. She doesn't seem like the type to run at the first sign of trouble."

No, his Ace sure wasn't like that, but then there were a few reasons he could think of that would do the deal.

"What did she say about Mom and Grandpa's impossible behavior after all?" Honor wondered.

Logan sighed. "We didn't talk about it. But in her place, I would send me to hell."

"What do you mean, you haven't talked about it? Then what else did you talk about? The weather?" Honor asked incredulously.

"We haven't talked at all, Honor," Logan told her tiredly. "I was too furious to talk at first and then too wary."

Honor took that in. "Logan – where is she now?" she wanted to know, her voice very omitting.

"Ace? At her dorm. I brought her home, then left, going for a walk – why?" Logan asked with a frown.

"God, Logan, what were you thinking?!" Honor though exclaimed and he could easily tell that now she was really annoyed with him. "You didn't talk, you just left her without a word and I bet you were acting pretty coldly. You always do when you've had a bad run in with the folks. What do you think she must be thinking now?"

Putting it like that…

"Oh shit," he uttered, shooting to his feet.

"Yeah, exactly," Honor said wryly. "Look, Logan, I can't tell you what to do, but I'll tell you this: I've just met Rory, but I think she's really great. And I know she means more to you than anyone else before and she totally responds those feelings. They were against Josh as well and tried their best to break us up, remember? But today, they approved, although grudgingly, of us marrying. So don't give up, don't let them take away this shot at real happiness for you," she told him more gentle. "And if you do decide to not be a complete fool: then for Heaven's sake see to it that you get back to your girlfriend and make sure that she understands that you're upset about how bad your family behaved and not because you're having second thoughts after them raising their points against her."

That last annoyed reminder wasn't necessary. He was already hurrying back towards Rory's dorm. He couldn't let her believe that he agreed with anything what his family had said about her. And perhaps Honor was right and he should just take his chances. If he kept Rory away from his family, it should work, shouldn't it? They never had to meet again, at least not for the time being. If he did end up wanting to actually marry her… Well, he didn't have to worry about that yet. It wasn't as if he wanted to get married at the moment, not even to his Ace.

"Logan?"

Oh yeah… "Honor, thanks, but I really need to get going now," he told his sister quickly.

"Have you come to your senses?" she simply answered with relief.

There were many comments he could think to answer that. "I'm going back to Rory," he settled to tell her in the end. "And hey, congrats, big sis. At least you and Josh got off easy tonight."

"Yeah, that still amazes me. Okay, baby brother. I'll call in a few days again. And tell Rory that I'd love to go shopping with her sometime," Honor told him and before he could reply, she had hung up.

Shaking his head, Logan put away the phone. His sister and his Ace on a shopping trip together – that was definitely something he had to avoid.

First though, he needed to make sure that everything was okay between him and Rory. Honor was right. He should never have taken off like that. What must Rory be thinking now?

Well, he could imagine _that_.

And that was why he almost broke out in a run in order to get back to his girlfriend faster.

* * *

Obviously, she had been on the phone when he knocked on the phone and he wondered who she had called. Her friend, Lane? Or perhaps – and he really hoped that wasn't the case – her mother? At least he was fairly sure that she wasn't already on the phone with her grandparents to tell them how scandalously the Huntzbergers had treated her. Though she'd have every right to do just that. But then, who the hell cared with whom she had spoken? The only thing important at the moment was that she understood that he didn't care one bit what his family thought of her and them being together.

"Hey," she greeted him hesitantly. "Everything okay?"

No, and he went straight forward to remedy that as best as he could. "I'm sorry."

She actually frowned. "For what?" she asked, as if nothing had happened.

He felt some relief at her reaction. If she wanted to break up with him she hardly would pretend that nothing had happened, wouldn't she? He still needed to apologize to her though and he did just that. "For just taking off like that. I just…" He stopped, unsure how to continue. "This was a very intense evening for me," he finally finished lamely.

"I'm sure," she responded quietly.

"But taking off like that…" Logan said sincerely. "I was overreacting, that's just stupid. So – forgive me?" he asked, almost timidly. He needed her to forgive him. Now standing in front of her and talking to her again, he wondered how he could ever even had thought of breaking it up with her.

But she just shook her head slightly. "There's nothing to forgive."

He took a deep breath as instant relief flooded him and he felt a weight being lifted from his heart. Nothing to forgive. He wasn't quite her opinion there but he sure wouldn't argue that point. Honor was right. Rory was the best thing that had ever happened to him and if it was necessary, he would fight for her, damn it!

Giving her a week smile, he nodded at her. "Come on, grab your coat. I'll take you to get something to eat," he told her gently.

Her face lit up so much that he felt his heart warm. "Okay, I'll be right back," she eagerly said and vanished back inside, while he remained standing where he was to wait for her.

She was probably starving, after all the excitement tonight, and that only on a tasteless soup. Plus, he realized that he needed to be with her right now: to reassure her that he wasn't having any doubts and to reassure himself that she still was him and be reminded of just why he would fight so hard for her. Usually, his family won in the big matters with him always drawing the short one but this time, he was going to win. He was not giving up on Rory, never – at least not because of anything his family thought or wanted.

"Okay, we can go," Rory said, appearing back in front of him.

Giving a slight nod, he held out his hand. She laid her hand into his, their fingers instantly entwining with that familiar boot of electricity running through him at touching her and involuntarily, his grip on her hand tightened as he drew her closer to his side.

No… No way was he ever going to give up on that.

* * *

His first instinct had been to go to Rick's but he had given up on that idea almost instantly. Chances were high that they would run into Finn and Colin and he wasn't in the mood to explain to them what had happened. Nor did he want to run into anyone else he knew. All he wanted was to have some private time with his Ace and a quiet place where they wouldn't be interrupted all the time. So he took her to a small bar he had discovered once by coincidence when going out after a fight with Colin and Finn and since then occasionally went there on the seldom times that he wanted to be alone. It had small, dark booths, good music but not so loud that you couldn't talk with each other anymore and while being technically a bar, they did serve a few meals that were quite good, but most of all, he had yet to see the cellar bar crowded with people.

Once seated and having ordered, Rory looked around. "I had no idea this bar was even around campus," she commented somewhat surprised.

He nodded. "Few do. I only happened on it coincidently as well. But I like it. It's the perfect place if you need something quiet and isolate." He glanced around, at the stone walls and the tables, chairs and bar of dark ebony. "I usually come here when I want to go out and be alone." Or to brood, not that he was going to admit to that as well.

"You're not alone now though," she said softly after a moment.

He looked into her eyes and gave her a crooked smile. "No, I'm not."

She just raised an eyebrow and waited for an elaboration.

He took one of her hands into both of his, staring at it for a moment before he lifted his eyes to meet hers again. "Things have changed," he said simply. "You're my girlfriend now, Rory, and I wanted to come here, with you." He shrugged, trying to explain it. "I don't want to be alone alone anymore – just to be alone with you."

To his surprise, Rory scooted over to him and laid her head onto his shoulder. "I'm glad to hear that," she said quietly. "Because you're not alone, you know? That comes with that whole relationship thing."

Some of the tension he had felt ever since leaving his family's place left him and he gently lifted her head so he could put an arm around her, immediately pulling her close against him. "I noticed. And I'm glad about it," he said back as quietly, the both of them falling into a comfortable silence that spoke volumes of their feelings.

They sat there like that silently until the owner brought over their drinks and Rory's plate of fried mushrooms. Sitting up, Rory hungrily turned to her food but he noticed that she stayed close enough to always be in body contact with him. He had the suspicious thought that she had that idea in her head that he needed to be comforted and he wasn't quite sure what to do about it. Then again, perhaps he needed just that. Leaning forward, he stole one of the mushrooms, earning himself a slap onto his hand.

"Mine," she growled, looking awfully cute doing that and he felt the corners of his lips lift into a smile. "If you want some, order your own portion," she told him with a glare.

Yep, he was smiling all right. "Why should I? Yours taste a lot better."

She opened her mouth to undoubtedly give him a sharp comeback but he used the opportunity to capture her lips and give her a deep kiss she soon answered with that passion that set his whole body into a small, burning fire. Then though she broke it to turn back towards her mushrooms and he sat back again with a smirk. Of course. How could he have forgotten that she was eating. To his surprise though she turned back around to him. "Open up," she ordered, a mushroom in her hand.

His eyebrows lifting, he complied and she fed him the mushroom. "You can have some of mine," she stated, turning back forward to eat one herself. When she turned around with another one for him, he let her feed him this one as well, amused and crazily touched by that enormous gesture of her. It was her first decent meal of the evening after all and he knew how she was with her food. Sharing was not a word in her vocabulary in that matter. "Of course you'll have to order me a second portion for that," she reminded him compliably, turning back forward again.

Logan grinned. "Sure, Ace. Then again, let's face it: you'd have wanted one anyway."

"There is that," she nodded with a shrug while feeding him another one. "They are really delicious."

"Told you so," Logan agreed, licking his lips.

"Don't boast it, Mister," she chided him, mildly though.

His grin deepened. "I don't boast, I merely point out the simply truth."

She shook her head, fed him another mushroom though. "You're just impossible."

"And yet you're with me, aren't you?" he reminded her.

Eating a mushroom herself, she shot him a look that went straight to his groin. "That I am indeed," she simply said. "And don't you forget that anytime soon again."

Serious, he nodded, not breaking eye contact with her. "I won't."

Satisfied, she nodded and held another mushroom out for him. "Good."

* * *

An hour and three portions later, Rory was back with her head leaning against his shoulder while Logan had his arms wrapped around her, one of their hands entwined.

"Are we going to talk about it?" she finally asked quietly, tilting her head to look up at him.

Logan, totally relaxed by now, didn't even tense at her bringing up the events from earlier that evening. "There's nothing to talk about," he sighed. "They are bastards and they were totally out of place, treating you like this."

"They are your family," she answered after a moment. "It's important what they think of me as your girlfriend."

But Logan shook his head. "No, Rory, it's really not. I never cared much about what they thought and I'm not going to start with it now." He paused for a moment. "I admit I didn't expect that reaction to you. To be honest, I rather worried about them wanting us to marry on the spot because you're a Gilmore." He looked down at her, searching her eyes, needing her to see how serious he was. "It doesn't matter though. What matters is that we want to be together and nothing what they say could ever change my mind about you, Rory."

"But…"

His hold on her tightened as he shook his head again. "And I need you to know how sorry I am about how they behaved tonight. There's no excuse for what they said," he told her, staring intently into her eyes. "Nor is one word of it true. You're great, Ace, and I hope you know that I don't agree with them even one bit."

"I know that, Logan, but…"

"But most of all, I'm sorry that I didn't see this coming. I should have, you know, but I didn't and led you right into it and for that I am truly sorry," he said sincerely. "I promise, I'm not making that mistake twice. From now on, I'll see to it that my folks leave you alone."

Raising a bit to look directly at him, Rory shook her head. "Logan, it's not your fault," she stated firmly. "You had no idea what expected us at your place and you can't help how your family thinks of me. I _was_ raised differently than you and I _do_ want to work. If your family's got a problem with that, fine, so be it. I know you don't think like them." She made a face. "I didn't much enjoy it but it's not that bad, believe me." Her eyes softened. "But they are your family and I do worry about how much they hurt _you_ tonight."

Surprised at that, Logan caressed her cheek. "Rory, no. I… Believe me, I stopped expecting anything else from them a long time ago. It's not important."

"And that's even sadder," she said quietly.

He shrugged. "It is how it is and it's not that bad. I've got Finn and Colin and there's always Honor, you know," he told her, stating the simple truth. Then he remembered his conversation with his big sister earlier on. "Oh, she wants to go shopping with you by the way, so don't be surprised when she calls or simply shows up at your doorstep." He smiled at Rory's surprise and light frown at his words. "And a little advice from someone who's very experienced: Don't bother to decline or refuse – she'll just nag you until you do whatever she wants you to do."

"I think that sounds somehow familiar," Rory gave back dryly.

Logan grinned wickedly. "Yeah well, who do you think I've learned it from?"

His Ace gave him a look but then she started smiling in a way that let the hairs on the back of his neck stand up immediately. "Hmm, thinking about it, it may be very interesting to go on a shopping tour with your big sister." Her smile widened, growing Logan's discomfort. "You know, there's no better opportunity to have a girl talk than while doing some seriously shopping."

He thought of all the things his sister knew about him that he definitely didn't want his girlfriend to know about and his eyes widened in alarm. "You know, thinking about it, I don't think it's that a good idea, you doing anything with Honor. My sister – she's a bit difficult as well, you know and I wouldn't want more members of my family to discomfort you."

But Ace just shook her head and settled back against his shoulder with a sly grin. "Too late now, Huntzberger."

Groaning, he sighed a long, suffering sigh and leaned his head on top of hers. He was so in for some serious embarrassment.

* * *

"Okay, mate, spill, I want to hear all the details. How long took it for your mother to be on the phone with Emily Gilmore, planning the wedding?" Finn descended upon him the minute Logan sat down at the table with his friends. "When's the wedding? Are you and Honor doing a double wedding? And of course I am your best man, right my best mate ever?"

Logan shook his head. That was just why he had avoided his friends all day so far. "There is no wedding so you don't need to worry about who's going to be best man, Finn," he sighed.

Colin raised an eyebrow. "There's not? Don't tell me they actually agreed to you two waiting until you both have finished school. I could have sworn they want you two securely married off before you two change your mind and break up or make something else stupid."

Logan gave him a sour smile. "Well, good you haven't bet on it, 'cause you sure would have lost your money on this one."

Catching up that something wasn't right, Finn and Colin frowned almost simultaneously.

"What do you mean?" Colin asked.

"What happened?" Finn wanted to know at the same time.

Logan shrugged and avoided their eyes. "Turns out that my family isn't all that crazy about me dating Rory. In fact, they very much disapprove of it and they didn't hold back at all to show just how much they hate that idea, behaving like complete assholes, right in front of Rory none the less."

He was somehow pleased at his friend's shocked and confused expressions. They knew his family and the whole society as well as him and it was comforting to see that he hadn't been the only one to completely misjudge the situation.

Colin recovered first from his shock, his frown deepening. "What do you mean, they disapprove? What's there to disapprove?"

Logan laughed bitterly. "You forget that she actually wants to travel the world as a reporter. Plus, and I quote, she was neither raised nor _bred_ for a life as my wife."

"Come on, you're joking, aren't you?" Finn demanded, giving him a look. "You have to, anything else would just be plain crazy! Our love is _the_ catch of the whole bunch of appropriate brides-to-be. A Gilmore, intelligent, beautiful, funny, rich and able to keep you on your toes. She's perfect!"

"Not for them. For them, she's unsuitable to marry into the family, and that's another quote of the many things Grandpa and Mom have told Rory directly into the face," Logan told them.

Their frowns would probably leave wrinkles, so deep was it by now, anger flaming up in their eyes as well.

"Seriously?" Colin asked, disbelieving.

Logan just nodded.

Finn shook his head. "And what did you do?"

"I tried to stop them, but you know how they are. So in the end, I simply walked out on them to get Rory the hell out of there," Logan answered with a shrug.

"And Mitchum let this happen?" Colin asked doubtfully. "I mean, I know he's probably the worst of them all, but this doesn't sound like him at all. I can't believe he'd allow a Gilmore being treated like that in his house. The Gilmores are an important family after all."

Logan shook his head. "He was late so the sharks could fall over Rory all they wanted." He grimaced darkly. "You ask me, he did it on purpose. He must have known what was going on."

"Probably," Finn nodded as darkly. "So what are you going to do now?"

Briefly glancing at him, Logan shrugged. "Nothing. Just making sure they won't be able to get another shot at Rory again. It's not as if I ever cared what they think and I sure as hell won't give up on Rory."

Colin nodded. "Good. For a moment there I feared you idiot would actually do something stupid like breaking up with Rory, 'cause they managed to feed your earlier doubts about committing to anyone and Rory especially."

Logan didn't answer, not willing to admit that he had entertained that thought briefly, as crazy as that seemed now to him. He noticed Finn giving him a long look, narrowing his eyes, but thankfully, the Australian didn't make a comment. Instead, his eyes went past Logan. "There comes our love," he said quietly – and unnecessarily as Logan was already turning around to look behind him. He couldn't explain it, but he had _felt_ his Ace the moment she had come into the cafeteria. Somehow his awareness and connection to her had deepened since the previous night.

Standing up, he greeted her with a quick kiss before he pulled her down to sit beside him, entwining his hand with hers.

"Hey, Love," Finn greeted her with a wide grin. "You ready for the party tonight?"

Rory raised an eyebrow. "Party?"

Oh yeah, he had totally forgotten about that. "Finn wants to give a party in honor of us becoming a couple," Logan quickly explained.

"Oh," Rory nodded and turned back to Finn. "Since when do you need an excuse for a party, Finn?"

Finn beamed at her. "But, Love, this one will be a blast of a party. It's not everyday that my best mate goes and gets himself a girlfriend."

"Plus, he's the first of us to fall," Colin nodded. "That must be properly celebrated."

"To fall?" Rory repeated, raising both eyebrows.

"Yeah, you know, like a proud, old tree, standing firmly in the wood until suddenly, there comes the lumberjack and cuts him down to join the other fallen trees swimming down the river," Finn nodded.

"Ah… you do know that you stole that from Rock Hudson in Pillow Talk, right?" Rory nodded with a knowing smile.

"Well, a great metaphor is a great metaphor," Finn answered smoothly. "So, you're ready?"

Rory shrugged. "Sure. Do your worst, Finn."

"Ah, just a girl after my heart," he nodded approvingly and glanced at Logan. "You better watch out for that love you've got there or I might want to steal her away from you."

"Hands off," Logan growled, pulling Rory closer. "Mine."

Rory rolled her eyes. "Are you quite finished now?" She looked at Logan. "Guess who came to the Yale Daily News today."

He raised an eyebrow in question. "Al Gore?"

"Nope," she said, shaking her head. "Mitchum Huntzberger, media mogul, in full person."

Immediately, Logan tensed. "He was looking for me?"

If his father was on campus he needed to get off of it.

But Rory shook her head again. "No. He wanted to see me."

That stopped him cold, dread filling him. "You? Why?" he asked suspiciously.

Across the table, Finn and Colin exchanged a wary glance as well.

"To apologize for what happened at dinner the other day," Rory answered, unaware of the tension of the boys.

"Really," Logan said doubtfully. He had a hard time to believe that his father would go to the trouble to come all the way out here to just apologize to Rory. Then again, she was a Gilmore and the granddaughter of friends of the family. Still…

"Yeah. And to offer me an internship at some new paper he had just bought. The Stamford Eagle Gazette?" Rory nodded.

"What?" Logan sat up straight in alarm.

She just confirmed it with a nod.

He glanced at his friends and saw that they were as puzzled by this as he was. Turning back to Rory, he frowned. "You didn't accept, did you?"

"At first not, no," she answered hesitantly and the bad feeling forming in his gut tightened. "But then he pointed out that I won't get a better chance and he's right." She glanced at him, taking a deep breath. "So I'm starting Monday, 10am."

Logan was quiet.

"Well? Aren't you going to say something?" Rory asked him.

Slowly, Logan shrugged. "What can I say? I assume it's already a done deal."

She frowned. "Yeah. Why? Are you against it?"

Hell yeah, he was. He didn't want his father anywhere near his Ace. But there was nothing he could do about that now, was there? Still, he could at least warn her.

"Just – my father can be very – difficult," he told her hesitantly.

She sighed. "I know you two have your issues but he _is_ one of the most important men in the news business, Logan. I can't refuse this opportunity."

And that was just the problem, wasn't it? With her ambitions, she really couldn't say no to this internship, Logan was fully aware of that. Even if every fiver of his body told him that this was a bad, bad idea. Then again, what could his father do? Rory was fantastic and perhaps, when his father saw just how good she was, his family would change their mind about her. Still – he didn't like this idea one little bit.

"Well, I have to go, my next class is in about five minutes," Rory said and stood up, giving Logan a quick kiss. "When do I have to be ready for the big event?"

"Five pm," Finn answered for Logan.

"I'll come get you then," Logan nodded.

With a last smile at everyone and another real quick kiss to Logan she hurried away.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Colin turned towards Logan. "What do you think is Mitchum planning to achieve with this internship?"

Logan shook his head. "No idea. But I don't like it," he said warily, his eyes narrowed.

"Perhaps he did acknowledge her talent and is just trying to secure it for you guys, any way possible," Finn suggested but didn't sound or looked as if he actually believed it.

Neither did Logan. It just wasn't like his father to do anyone a favor. He firmly believed in everyone making his own fortune. Plus, his father never did anything just out of the good of his heart. There was always some reason behind it, something that would work in his father's favor, so this had to be no exception. The only question was: what did his father want to achieve with this?

Whatever it was, it couldn't be good, not after what had happened yesterday. And that Rory was caught right in the middle… He shivered involuntarily.

Finn and Colin noticed and nodded knowingly, having come to the same conclusion.

"What are you going to do?" Colin asked the question they all were thinking.

And an excellent question at that. Unfortunately, Logan had no answer for him.

* * *

"You're son, Sir," Nicole announced him quietly even as Logan strolled past her into his father's office.

His father looked up and gave Logan a look before he nodded at his personal assistant – and certainly also one of his many affairs, not that Logan cared about that. "Thank you, Nadine." She disappeared and his father turned to him. "Now, Logan, if that isn't a surprise. I wasn't aware you even remembered where the office is, so long you haven't been here."

Logan ignored the dip at him and just moved to come to a stop in front of his father's desk, glaring at him. "I heard about the internship you offered Rory."

"Ah yes, of course you would have. A charming young lady you've got there, if I may say so," his father nodded with a smile.

"What to you plan to achieve, Dad?" Logan demanded to know, giving him a hard look.

His father's pale blue eyes narrowed slightly but he kept smiling. "Why, nothing at all, Logan. I was merely there to apologize for the terrible treatment your mother and grandfather had given her. I thought, with her ambitions, the internship would be a good means to repay it to her." He leaned back in his seat. "Besides, she sure has talent. There had been quite a few interesting articles from her. I'd like to promote it, if I can."

Logan shook his head. "You really want me to believe this crap?"

Losing the smile, his father's eyes narrowed even more. "You can believe whatever you want, Logan. I said how it is." He inclined his head a bit to the side. "Or are you of the opinion she doesn't deserve this internship?"

"Oh no, she deserves it all right," Logan said. "No one knows better than I just how good she is. But we both know that this has nothing to do with her talent." He leaned forward, putting his hands onto his father's shining, clean desk that had cost over a hundred thousand dollars. "But I warn you, Dad: Whatever you are planning, forget about it because I swear to God, if you hurt her in any way, you will regret it."

His father regarded him silently with piercing eyes for a long moment. "I don't like threats, Logan," he finally answered mildly. "Especially not empty ones."

Logan straightened. "It's not empty, Dad, nor am I kidding here," he answered quietly. "I mean it. Hurt her and you won't like the repercussions."

He didn't wait for an answer. Instead, he turned on his heel and strolled out as determined as he had come in, closing the door behind him softly. Only when he was back in the car he allowed himself to take a deep, shuddering breath, slumping. He hoped he had been convincing enough after all. He had meant every word he had said to his father, but he wasn't sure what he'd actually do when his father still dared to do anything to Rory. But that didn't matter now. His father needed to know that Logan was serious about this and that no matter what he had planned, Logan wasn't going to give up on Rory. If anything, he'd rather give up on his family and the destiny that awaited him.

Perhaps, Rory was safe now, though he didn't help much hope. His father was a stubborn man and once he had set his mind… Then again, his father knew that that was a treat his son had inherited from him, so it was possible that his unnamed threat was enough for his father to rethink his plans in petto for Rory.

Turning on the key in the ignition, Logan pulled out of the garage to head back to Yale and his girlfriend he hopefully had protected with this short visit at his father as best as he could.

Still, what he really wanted was to turn back time and make sure his family never learned of Rory, bringing her right into the focus of those lunatics.

Then again, she was his girlfriend after all and sooner or later, his family would have gotten wind of that. And despite all the trouble his family had caused – he wasn't going to change that for anything in this world.

* * *

TBC!

_(Author's Note: I'm still alive and still writing. Sorry for the long wait, really. But I just don't have that much time to write anymore and the little I have has to be divided for many different stories - plus something original I'm working on. But be assured that even if there hasn't been an update in a very long time, I haven't forgotten about the story nor do I intend to abandon a single one of my stories. Still thanks for all the fantastic reviews or reminders to finally continue with this one. I do hope you're happy now - and that the length of this one (73 pages - I'm definitely crazy) at least made up a bit for it. I loved this episode and it was actually really this episode that compelled me to start with this whole baby here. After watching them leave the Huntzbergers I just couldn't stop fathoming Rory taking care od Logan, comfort him and I so desperately needed to have this that I wanted to write it. Then though I thought, hey, why not start in the beginning and leading up to this... Yeah well, two years and 610 pages later I finally managed to do what I originally set out to do - yep, definitely crazy. Now to a answer a few recurring questions: First, I'm definitely going to finish this one, even if it takes me another year. Second, yeah, I do plan to cover the sixth and seventh season as well, though seeing how fast I'm not progressing, I'm not sure if I really can do it, but we'll see. I'd really like to do it. And last, you can be guaranteed that if I manage to eventually cover the last season as well, I sure as hell won't ruin my story like those damn show writers have done it with this marvelous and perfect couple and will let them have a happy end. I even already know it and have it sketched out - too bad I'm probably years away from it. Oh well... All this said, sorry for the long note, I hope you enjoyed it and until next time. And please: never stop to let me know what you're thinking!)_


	15. The Thing about First Impressions

**Chapter 15: The Thing about First Impressions**

**(How Many Kropogs to Cape Cod?)**

He hadn't heard from his father again, nor had Rory, so Logan apparently assumed that all in all, his brief _encounter_ with his father had at least not jeopardized Rory's internship. During the last few days it had become obvious how excited she really was about her impending internship in a real newspaper office, to be an assistant to none other than the great Mitchum Huntzberger. She had barely been able to talk much about anything else and Logan expected no change of that for their date this evening.

Sure, he had his ways to get Rory thinking about other things but still... somehow, their conversations would return back always to the internship and his father and really - these were not topics any guy would want to talk about while on a date with his girlfriend. Especially, not this guy.

He couldn't help it, ever since Rory had told him about the internship, he had this real bad feeling and confronting and warning his father about it may have helped calm Logan a bit, but only in the beginning. Then, the bad feeling had grown back, in full force if not even getting worse, making him actually feel sick. He wished desperately that he could simply tell Rory to forget about the internship and stay far, far away from any one of his lunatic family members.

Tough chance there.

Shaking his head, frustrated, he knocked at Rory's dorm door, trying to push the queasy feeling and his wariness away so he could enjoy the evening ahead of him, spent with his girlfriend.

He hadn't had to wait long. Already, the door was opening and Rory appeared, smiling warmly at him.

"Hey there, Ace," Logan smiled, feeling himself calming somewhat instantly, and stepped forward, eager for a kiss.

"Hi," she beamed back and reached up to welcome him with her lips.

"Nice. Very nice."

Glancing behind Rory, Logan noticed Paris looking at them with a smile that made Logan slightly nervous. In his experience, Gellar never smiled like that - or if she did, then that would be a reason to get the hell out of there. Rory must have sensed his thoughts, because she was pushing him towards her room. "Hey, you want to see my room? It's far away from here."

Making a last wary glance at Paris, Logan agreed wholeheartedly. "Good idea."

That girl really made him nervous. She was still looking at them with that stupefied smile. Just to be on the safe side, he tried a half-hearted wave with an even more insincere smile. Thankfully, they reached Rory's room and as soon as Rory had closed the door, Logan grabbed her for a proper greeting kiss.

Her arms still locked around his neck, Rory's smile turned softer. "Hello."

Feeling almost ridiculously warmed by that smile alone, Logan smiled back, tightening his hold on her. "Hello."

"What are you thinking about?" Rory asked, her eyes twinkling.

Logan's smile widened. God, his Ace sure knew him. "Whether or not you've ever woken up with Paris standing over you with a knife."

"Not recently," Rory deadpanned. "She's been in a good mood."

Gellar? Good mood? Was that even possible? "Why is that?"

"Because she's in love," Rory answered, her expression mockingly dreamy.

Gellar? In _love_? Worse... "With _Doyle_?" he asked, incredulous.

"Yes, with Doyle," Rory nodded. "And do not mock or make fun, because when Paris is happy, the whole world is happy. But when she's not happy, the whole world is Deadwood."

Yeah, well, that he could believe easily. "Got it. You hungry?" he wanted to know, ignoring the slight grunt his stomach made at the thought of food.

"Yes, I'm starving!" Rory confirmed, not much to anyone's surprise. His Ace was always hungry. "Just let me get my sweater." She slid out of his arms and opened her closet, but when she turned, she held up a dress. "What do you think of this dress? Does it look newspaper-y enough?"

Not quite following her question, he frowned. "What?"

"I'm trying to figure out what to wear on my first day at the paper," she explained.

"Ah, the internship rears its ugly head again," he said sarcastically. Of course, the internship... He should have known that she had been talking about that one. Again.

She didn't seem to hear his sarcasm as she already started to ramble about it again. "I want to look professional but not too Lois Lane-y, and I don't want to look like a college kid."

"You _are_ a college kid," Logan pointed out.

"Not on Monday," Rory protested. "On Monday, I am a newspaper woman. And I have to look like a newspaper woman."

Man, she was really nervous about this. He couldn't see her problem though. She could wear anything she wanted and she would look good, so why the fuss? Women. "Whatever you wear will be fine."

Somewhat calmed, Rory beamed and hung up the dress back into the closet. "I'm so excited."

Logan just suppressed a sigh. "I can tell."

"Oh, last night I couldn't sleep so I googled your father," she continued, walking over to her desk and grabbing a thick pile of papers.

Logan blinked. "Excuse me?"

"Twelve thousand fifty three items came up. I could only pull up a couple thousand, but it really helped," she nodded, leafing through the printout as Logan watched partially amused but also with some growing wariness. The feeling in the pit of his stomach was really taking a turn to the worse now. "He was born in 1953, Episcopalian, second of four children, oldest boy, Yale undergrad, star of the track team. No grad school. Interesting. Then he had a couple of lost years. Kind of a blank period, a little Jesus thing going on there. Worked as a reporter and editor for two of the Huntzbergers papers before taking over as CEO of the company!" she rambled on, clearly on a roll now.

Nothing was new to Logan. Heaven knew he had been told about all of those, time and time again. But he really didn't like the admiration he could see and hear from his Ace now. How the hell could he make her understand that all of these facts hardly said anything about how the great Mitchum Huntzberger really was? "Uh..."

"I mean, when you look at all these accomplishments, the man must never sleep!" Rory interrupted him.

No, his dad didn't sleep much, that much was true. Though he doubted she'd like the way Mitchum Huntzberger spent the little down time he had. Usually screwing the closest pair of legs and boobs. "Well..."

"Ah!" Rory once again interrupted him though, reading through a page of the printout. "Mm-hm, four hours a night. Just like Clinton."

More or less, but Logan didn't see any point in confirming this one. He was a bit amazed that even that information was available in the internet and that Rory had actually found that one in the first place. Heaven knew he was aware of his Ace's obsession with research, but really, this was just not healthy anymore. Actually, it was even kind of creepy. "You don't have a wall in a secret room with pictures of my father pasted all over it, do you?" he asked dryly - and only half joking.

The thought alone made him want to puke. Ugh.

"Logan, I'm going to be interning for him. I need to know everything about him," Rory insisted, her eyes finally looking back at him, sternly. "Is he an egghead? Because he seems very roll-up-sleeves-y. But he's written about everything, from foreign affairs, domestic policies. He had a wine column, for God's sake!" She looked down again at the information she had printed out regarding Mitchum Huntzberger. "I should learn more about wine," she murmured.

Wine? His Ace didn't even like wine that much. This was getting out of hand! "Look, Rory..."

But she was still in a roll. "What are his politics? He's unbelievably neutral in his writing! Right wing, left wing, middle wing. Oh, the man was short-listed for the Pulitzer for covering the Iranian hostage crisis when he was twenty-five!"

Ugh... "Yeah, I heard something about that," Logan mentioned sarcastically. She did know who she was talking to, didn't she?

"Twenty-five! How did he do that? Especially considering his lost years?" Her eyes looked back at him and yep, that was definitely admiration he saw there. Admiration for his dad. Fuck. She was so going to be disappointed. She'd learn the true colors of Mitchum Huntzberger soon enough, he knew that. Hence, the sick feeling. "He's a born journalist. I mean, what does he read? What papers, what journals? Come on, tell me something," she finally stopped her rambling with a very unpleasant question for him to answer.

Shit. She wanted answers from him. He guessed that being Mitchum Huntzberger's son and her boyfriend was only natural, but then, she had clearly no idea just how bad the relationship between him and his father was, despite what happened at the dinner at the Huntzberger home. Shit. "He hates peas," he finally responded, not able to think of anything better than that. And hey, it was the truth. His dad hated peas with a passion.

Rory was not pleased. "Logan, I need your help here."

Should have known that the _peas'_ information wouldn't help him get out of this. So be it, the truth then. "Rory, my dad and I basically have two conversations: 'Logan, you're not living up to your potential' and 'Logan, when you're sailing close-hauled, wait until you gain that last bit of boat speed before you pull in the jib sheet'. That's it."

Her excitement finally downed. "But..."

"Ace! You've learned more about my father in one night than I've learned in my whole life! Don't worry. You're going to be fine!" At least he hoped though. Desperately needing a change of topic, Logan looked around. "Now, I thought we've established that we're both starving."

Thankfully, Rory took the hint and nodded, putting away the stack of papers. "Yes, we have. Let's go."

Immensely relieved, Logan turned towards the door, hearing Rory behind him.

"Oh! Wait!" Hanging his head, he stopped and looked back. Yep, she was back reading the printout, making a note. "Your dad covered Haiti in 1985. Must learn more about Haiti. Got it." She turned back. "Okay, let's go," she said, coming over to him. "Hey, have you discussed Pinochet with him? Because one time he wrote..."

Argh! When would she finally take the hint?! "Peas, Ace. Peas."

"Right. Sorry," she apologized but Logan didn't trust that one.

To be fair, she didn't ask any more questions about his father until they've reached his car. Then again, she didn't talk at all until they've reached his car. He wasn't sure if that was a good or bad sign. The silence continued, growing uncomfortably.

"Logan? You're not mad at me, are you?" Rory finally broke the silence.

Surprised, Logan glanced at her. "Mad? Why would I be mad?"

"For asking too many questions about your father. I know you've got your issues with him and that you don't like talking about him, really, I do and I'm sorry for always rambling about him for the past few days… it's just, I'm really nervous about Monday." She made a face. "I mean, he's Mitchum Huntzberger! And if that's not intimidating enough, he's your father on top of that. My boyfriend's father. And I'm going to work with him. I just really don't want to screw this up."

His eyes flew from the road to Rory and back. "Ace, you won't screw up. You're incapable of screwing anything up and most certainly not this one."

"Well, you're biased… you're my boyfriend," Rory just sighed, unconvinced. "But this is really important to me, you know? Not just because of this being this incredible opportunity - but your dad... he was nice to me when he came by, really polite and everything. I think he truly wanted to apologize for the other night. And I know you've said your family's opinion is not important to you..."

"It's not," Logan emphasized, nodding.

"But if there's a chance that at least your dad's okay with me, likes me, then I really think this will mean pretty much something positive for you after all, even if you don't want to admit it. I know it means much to me because I really don't like the idea that your family is so completely against me," she continued softly. "And that's why I'm so nervous and pestering you so much because I really, really don't want to disappoint your father and turn himself against me as well."

"Rory..." Cursing, Logan quickly checked the rearview mirror then drove to the side and parked by the curve, turning to her. "Look, just relax, okay? And don't worry so much about the internship. I meant what I said, I really do: I don't care what my family thinks. This is about you and me, just you and me. So, please, just look at this internship as nothing more but an internship. One you'll be brilliant at, I'm sure of it. Forget about my father and who he is. Just be yourself and you'll impress everyone with that incredible talent you have, trust me."

She bit her lip and looked down.

"Rory?"

She sighed deeply, looking back at him. "I'll try to," she finally promised.

"Good," he said and softly caressed her cheek before turning back to the steering wheel and pulling away.

They fell silent again, but this time it was a comfortable silence.

"So, what's the plan for tonight?" she eventually asked.

Logan shrugged. "I thought we'd have a mellow evening, perhaps going to a few bars."

He felt her glance at him. "Mellow evening?"

Again, he shrugged. "Yeah, why not?"

Her answer was slow and he could still feel her eyes on him. "Okay."

They were silent for a while.

"Are we meeting some of your friends?" she broke the silence after a while.

"No. That's part of the mellow part. Or when was the last time we had a quiet time with Finn and Colin around?" he asked with a smirk.

"Just the two of us then?"

"Hmm," Logan nodded, glancing at her. "Why? Isn't that okay?"

"Of course it's okay. I love to be alone with you, you know that," she immediately answered, shaking her head. "I'm just a bit surprised. You're usually not so much for a mellow time."

Stopping at a traffic light, Logan took the opportunity to properly look at her. "That was before I was in a committed relationship and found out that alone time with my girlfriend beats any of the activities I had previously engaged in regularly."

"Uh-huh," Rory uttered, but there was something twinkling in her eyes, something soft.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Logan kept looking at her, despite the stoplight having turned to green. There was no car behind them, so why not? He was really intrigued now. "Ace."

She sighed and shook her head. "It's silly."

"All the more reason to tell me then," he nagged her.

"It's just... You know, that was the two hundredth time," she finally gave in.

But Logan couldn't follow that one. "Two hundred what?"

"You calling me your girlfriend," she admitted, blushing. "I have no idea how you've managed to say it that many times in the few days we've been together now, but it's been two hundred times. At least when you said it in front of me. No idea how big the number really is."

He felt himself smiling really big. "Really? Two hundred times?"

She nodded.

"Now, if that doesn't scream for a celebration…" Logan said, already thinking about the game plan for the evening again. Definitely bar-hopping, especially the ones he had already taken her to.

"Again? I'm hardly over Finn's celebration party yet," she groaned and Logan laughed, finally continuing to drive into town. Yeah, Finn had exceeded himself, he had to admit that. Having been on most of his Australian friend's parties he could tell that the last one was definitely in the top five. Strangely, he was somewhat touched that Finn had organized such a celebration for his and Rory's honor.

Of course, he knew only too well that Finn had cleverly planned this just in case of an impending wedding, trying to favor himself up in Logan's eyes. Finn really wanted to be his best man. Colin, too, unfortunately though and Logan already dreaded the day when he had to decide. Why the hell couldn't it be two best men after all? That would make life oh so much easier.

Not that he needed to worry about that yet. Not for a long, long time. Marriage wasn't in his plan for the next five years at least, if not longer. Not even with his Ace. But, of course, that was still out of question. They had barely begun dating after all.

And yet he apparently had managed to already refer to Rory as his girlfriend two hundred times. Amazing. Then again, if you had such a wonderful girlfriend, you just had to emphasize that time and time again. And he needed to get the word and message around, that he was off the market and more importantly, that Rory was most definitely off the market now as well.

"Hey, are you all right?"

Blinking, Logan glanced at her. "Hmm?"

Rory's eyes were deep blue with slight concern. "Are you all right? You spaced out on me."

"Oh yeah, I'm fine, just thinking about tonight," Logan waved her concern away though. "Hey, what about the tapas bar downtown? I think that would be a great place to start our celebration tour, don't you think so?"

"Sure, why not. But - celebration tour?" Rory asked, frowning.

"Yeah. I'm thinking going to all the bars here in town that we've already been to. A trip down memory lane and marking them as ours. And to show off my girlfriend, of course." Oops, that was perhaps not the best idea to say a bit out loud.

But Rory just smiled, shaking her head. "Gotta say, Huntzberger, when you're doing something you sure do it all the way, huh?"

"You can bet on that," Logan agreed, flashing her his best shark grin. "And you better not forget it."

She rolled her eyes. But her smile stayed on her face and Logan couldn't ask for more.

* * *

"Are you sure you're okay?"

Restraining himself from rolling his eyes, Logan sighed. "For the last time, yeah."

Okay, so that was a lie. The queasy feeling from earlier in the evening had come back at the first smell of the food they'd ordered in the tapas bar. And two bars later, his head had grown heavy and hurt with the slightest movement and he changed from feeling hot to almost shivering from one moment to the other. He was beginning to think that maybe, he was actually sick and not just worrying about Rory, his dad and that damn internship.

But that wasn't possible. He never got sick, not since he'd been six years old and had had the measles.

"You sure? Because you really don't look that good." Rory held a hand to his cheek and her eyes widened. "Shit, Logan, you're burning up!"

"I'm fine," he insisted, ducking away from her hand.

"The hell you are! Come on, up, we're going home," Rory though ordered, starting to slide out of the booth.

Logan grabbed her hand. "No! We're celebrating, remember? I'm fine. No need to go home yet."

"You're sick, Logan!" Rory protested. "We celebrated enough. And as I'd like to actually have a few more celebrations with you, we should go home and get you into bed, ASAP."

"Come on, Ace, I'm good. We really don't need to go," Logan though insisted.

Her eyes glared at him, studied him. Finally, she sighed. "I guess you've got to know it best," she grudgingly admitted.

"Exactly," Logan agreed.

"But let's go someplace else then, please," she continued, looking around, her nose wrinkling up.

"But we just got here!" Not to mention that he would definitely prefer to remain sitting for a while longer.

"Yeah, I know, but I don't like it here." She looked back at him. "You probably don't remember it, but the last and only time we've been here you got hit on by pretty much every girl here while I just seemed invisible. I just don't think this is the best place to celebrate something significant like our blossoming relationship."

They had? He couldn't remember anything like that and even if it was true, he doubted that he'd have let her feel invisible. Truth was that he didn't even notice other girls while being with his Ace and that was so since pretty much the beginning of their acquaintance. But there really seemed to be resentment in her eyes.

Damn.

Heavily, he got up, ignoring the sudden dizziness overwhelming him. "Okay, then let's go. You pick out the next place."

She nodded and turned, but he could feel her shooting glances his way every few seconds. Clenching his jaw, he forced himself to keep his shoulders straight and his head high. The fresh air outside helped to clear his foggy head a bit, he noticed. On the other hand, the fresh air made him shiver instantly. All of a sudden, Rory was beside him, positioning herself under his arm while she put an arm around his middle, supporting him.

"Jeez, Logan…" She murmured, looking up at him. "Why are you being so difficult? It's not a crime to get sick."

Logan opened his mouth to reassure her again that he really was fine but the world around him suddenly started to spin and he felt himself falling into the abyss.

"Logan!"

* * *

"So, you're still alive."

Confused, Logan slowly opened his eyes, frowning at how hard that was. Since when did his eyelids weigh so much? Once he accomplished opening his eyes, he realized that he was lying in a darkened room. Blinking, and that hadn't gotten any easier, he took a closer look, finally detecting that apparently, he was in his room and Colin was sitting on a chair beside his bed.

Okay…

"What…" His throat was dry and raspy and somehow it really hurt to speak. He swallowed. "…happened?"

Colin raised an eyebrow but it wasn't him who answered.

"You fainted. That's what happened."

Turning his head, Logan saw his Ace standing in the doorframe, her arms crossed, her eyes narrowed to slits that shot daggers at him. Uh-oh – looked like he was seriously in the dog house. Not that he knew why – then again, he didn't care that much at that moment. To be frank, the way his head pounded he wouldn't mind that much if she ripped it off. Knowing his Ace, though, he doubted that his head would be the body part she'd rip off, so…

"What?"

A muscle in her jaw clenched, her next glare vaporized him and she turned on her heel. "Where the hell's Finn with that stupid doctor?" she hissed and vanished.

Logan blinked after her, his confusion very evident.

"Man, I'm so glad I'm not you right now and that's certainly not because you're sick as a dog."

Again, Logan took on himself the monumental task of turning his head back to Colin. Thank God he didn't have to ask again what was going on as Colin apparently could read the question in his eyes.

"You're sick," he complied.

Logan shot him another look and Colin rolled his eyes. "I know, you never get sick, but believe me, you really got it bad this time."

Frowning, Logan finally accepted the situation, closing his eyes. Considering the fire in his throat, the hammering pain in his head and the lousy feeling in his stomach, not to mention his burning eyes and the fact that he was still shivering despite feeling really hot, he guessed he really was sick.

Shit.

"You gave your girl quite a scare, let me tell you that." Logan forced his eyes open again. Colin studied him quietly for a moment before elaborating. "She really sounded off when she called us to help carry your sorry ass up to your bed. You owe us for that, by the way." Logan managed a faint shrug. Colin sighed and shook his head. "Then again, you'll be in hell for a while so maybe, we let you off the hook this time." He grinned dirtily. "I think Rory will make you pay enough already, so spitting mad she was."

Sighing, Logan closed his eyes again.

Colin may be right there.

* * *

Then he was awoken by fingers probing his throat. He jumped.

"Easy, Logan," Rory's voice murmured from somewhere above him and he felt her taking his hand. "This is Dr. Bloomberg. He's just checking you out."

His vision clearing, Logan could make out a fifty-something fat-looking guy leaning over him and giving him a reassuring smile. "That's right, you listen to your girlfriend here." He glanced up. "You said he fainted?"

Okay, it may hurt like hell, but he had to set this straight. "Not fainted," he rasped. "Maybe passed out, but not fainted."

Rory shot him a death glare. "Yeah, he _fainted_. He came out of it a few times, but was never really lucid. The time he really woke again was half an hour later."

Dr. Bloomberg nodded, his hands probing their way down. Logan squirmed. "Did you take his temperature?" the doctor wanted to know.

"When we got here," Rory nodded. "A hundred and four degrees."

Logan frowned.

"Okay. Logan, have you been feeling sick before today?"

With a glance at his Ace, he nodded with a sigh. Ow! He'd have to remember not to nod so much.

"Since when?"

Aware of the intensity of Rory's eyes on him, he refused to glance at her again. "A couple of days?"

"Have you felt dizzy?"

He shook his head, very minimal.

"Thrown up?"

Again a shake.

"Headache?"

A nod this time, a small one. Not that he was sure that he had had those headaches because of any sickness. His father and his girlfriend working together would always cause him headaches.

"Now open your mouth."

He did as he was told and let the doctor probe in there as well, feeling embarrassed as hell with Rory standing there right beside his bed, hovering. This was not how he wanted his girlfriend to see him. Then again, he couldn't deny that her finger stroking the back of his hand reassuringly really felt good.

"Can you help me sit him up?"

It took Logan a moment to realize that Bloomberg was talking to Rory and not him. Frowning, he pushed himself up. Really, as if he couldn't sit up on his own! The world went black around him and he could feel Rory's cold hands gripping his shoulder, keeping him upright. Slowly, the world shifted back into focus again while the cold stethoscope wandered over his back and chest. He sighed, relieved when they eased him down so he could lie on his back again, resisting the urge to just close his eyes and sleep. God he was tired.

"You've got the flu," Bloomberg nodded, straightening up. "Nothing bad. You'll have to stay in bed for a few days and I suggest a liquid diet, but you should be fine in a few days."

"Good to hear," Logan rasped and lost the fight to let his eyes stay open.

"Thank you so much, Dr. Bloomberg," was the last thing he heard before he once again sank into a dark abyss.

* * *

"Ah, you finally returned from the dead."

Logan blinked, glancing around. He still was in his room, but this time it was Finn who sat by his bed. Strange, he had the feeling that Rory had been there but she was nowhere in sight.

"Rory?" he asked.

"Had to go to her lecture. That's why I'm here. I'm on official nurse duty," Finn told him, flashing him a dirty grin.

Logan groaned and closed his eyes again. Great. As if being sick and bound to bed wasn't bad enough. But perhaps, if he convinced Finn that he was fine, he could get rid of him. Right. Opening his eyes again, he pushed himself into a sitting position and congratulated himself that the world wasn't spinning that much. So far so good.

"Well, I'm good now. You can go back to your own dorm now," he told Finn. "I promise to stay in bed," he added, thinking that that may be a point to be considered. Not that he felt like walking around.

"No," Finn just said though, not even looking up from the comic magazine he was reading. Looked like _Batman_.

"Come on," Logan argued. "I'm fine on my own, really. And I'm sure you have better things to do. There has to be a redhead waiting for you, somewhere."

"Sure there is," Finn nodded, turning the page. "There are many better things I can think of doing right now than sitting here and watching you sweat like a pig and drool like a baby."

"See. So…?"

"She threatened my balls," Finn interrupted him, looking up with his eyes staring straight into Logan's.

"What?"

"Our love. Said if I let you out of my sight, she's ripping off my balls and will feed them to piranhas," Finn explained and shook his head. "And I've got no doubt that she meant every word of it. Man, she sure can be scary, your Reporter Girl. So you see, there's no way you're getting rid of me, mate. I won't risk my balls."

Logan stared at him, flabbergasted. Then he let his head sink back against the board and closed his eyes, defeated. There was no way he'd get out of this and he couldn't even blame Finn for it.

No sane man would risk his balls.

* * *

"And was he good?"

"Behaved like an angel," Finn smirked and got up, stretching.

Rory rolled her eyes. "Why don't I believe you?"

Finn just laughed and flipped Logan a mock salute. "'Till tomorrow then. Love."

He sauntered out, unfazed by Logan's glare which was boring holes into his back. So Logan turned his glare from him to his girlfriend. She had the audacity to smile at him, coming over to him and stroking his hair back. "And how are you feeling?"

Still glaring, Logan ducked his head away from her. "What devil has gotten into you to ask _Finn_ to baby-sit me?"

Her smile turned wicked. "Just wanted to make sure that you stayed in bed and rested, just like the doctor told you to."

"But Finn? And who said anything about me not staying in bed?" he grumbled.

Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Oh, I don't know. Perhaps you bar-hopping while running a fever of hundred-and-four and still insisting to be fine and wanting to go on may have given me a clue that you're not all that good with being sensible about your own health. If you hadn't fainted I probably wouldn't have been able to convince you to go home at all."

Logan looked away. "I didn't know I was sick," he defended himself but even to his own ears it sounded lame. "And, I didn't faint."

"Ah, so what would you call your suddenly sagging against me and not responding when I called your name? Last time I checked with the dictionary that's called _fainting_. And do you really want to make me believe that you didn't know you were sick? You feeling like crap and burning up is perfectly normal for you then?" she asked sarcastically and sat down, facing him.

Logan shrugged.

She sighed. "Why, Logan? Why not simply admit that you were sick instead of pulling this stupid stunt?"

He looked back at her, just looking for a while. "I dunno. I didn't want to disappoint you?" he finally offered.

She raised an eyebrow. "Disappoint me? Why on Earth would you being sick disappoint me? People get sick from time to time. This time, the flu got you. It's not as if you have an STD infection."

Logan shook his head. "No, I guess not. But you know, I usually don't get sick. And I really didn't feel that bad until you started noticing it as well. We had something to celebrate. I didn't want to ruin that – our first celebration."

"Logan, you really think you fainting on me was a celebration?" Rory leaned forward, taking his hand into hers. "Okay, from now on, remember this: celebrations can be postponed. When you're sick, you tell me, you stay at home and you'll do what I tell you and you'll drink what I give you. And only when you're truly well again can we go out and celebrate."

He met her eyes and slowly nodded. "Sounds like a reasonable plan."

"Especially one that you'll actually survive," she agreed.

"Now there's no need to exaggerate. It's just the flu," he protested, giving her a weak smile.

"Well, had you not fainted I wouldn't have been able to have a doctor see you. The flu can kill, you know. Ever heard of the Spanish flu? Or the bird flu?" Rory countered, her eyes smiling.

Logan studied her for a moment, thinking back to what Finn and Colin had told him. "I'm sorry that I worried you," he said softly, seriously.

Rory looked down, her thumb stroking his hand. "Yeah, you did."

"I know. I'm sorry," he repeated.

She looked back at him and his throat felt suddenly thicker than before when he saw tears brimming in her eyes. "You better be. Scaring your girlfriend like that is not on the list of what a good boyfriend should do."

"I'm sorry," he said once again. It was all he could think of saying.

She nodded. "I know. Just don't let it happen again." He nodded and she smiled. "Now, how are you feeling?"

Logan fought the urge to assure her that he was fine and went for the truth. "My head's still heavy, talking and swallowing still hurts and I'm not hungry because I'm pretty sure that I couldn't keep anything down, anyway. But my fever's down to ninety-eight and everything hurts less, so yeah, I'm feeling better."

Her eyes lit up and she stroked his head again. "Now that's better. I've got some chicken soup for you. I'll heat it up. I know you're not feeling hungry, but just try it. Trust me. I think you'll keep it down and it will help you feel better," she said, her voice full of sympathy.

Now, that was much better than having Finn there. Actually, he could get used to having Rory hover over him like this. It was new to him. Never had someone who hovered around him. When he had gotten sick, his mother had usually fled the house, leaving him in his nanny's care while his father and grandfather had told him to not be such a wuss. It never had bothered him but seeing now how nice it was to have someone who cared taking care of him – this really felt good.

"Thank you," he said, quietly.

"Hey, that's only normal," she smiled back and got up, leaving the room, probably to go heat up the soup.

Normal… perhaps for her. For him – this was anything else other than normal. But if he had anything to say about this then he'd see to it that it would become normal for him as well.

* * *

"Come on, pick up…"

Waking up to Rory's muttered words, Logan briefly looked around. Right. His bedroom, him sick. Check. Day? Uh…

"I wonder why she's not picking up… It's like she knows why I'm trying to reach her?" Rory muttered, pacing in front of the window, her cell phone against her ear.

"Who… and why?" he rasped, his throat still a bit rough and dry.

She whirled around, glancing at him. With a sigh, she lowered her arm and closed her phone, making a face. "Grandma. I tried to reach her so I can cancel for tonight. I swear to you, she knows. That's why she's not reachable all of a sudden."

Cancel? Oh. It must be Friday then. Rubbing his eyes, he sat up a bit. "Why do you want to cancel?"

Rory just gave him a look.

He sighed. "Because of me? Look, Rory, don't be ridiculous. I'm much better, my fever's almost gone and you'd be gone for what, three, four hours? I think I can manage?" he stated, if somewhat sarcastically.

She continued to just look at him.

"I promise I'll be good. The most I'll do is walk to the bathroom, maybe the couch to watch some TV. Promise," he emphasized.

She said nothing.

"Look, Emily probably won't accept me as an excuse to get out of the dinner anyway. And even if she does, she'll want an alternate dinner date for it – and won't let you bail out on her anytime soon," Logan reasoned. "Think about Honor's engagement party in a few weeks. It's on a Friday and she really wants you there. _I_ want you there."

She at last looked as if she was contemplating his words. Yes!

"There's no chance I can bail out on that party, you know that. I mean, Honor's my sister and it's her engagement. I need to be there. But I really don't want to hang around her party alone, with Honor's stupid friends, soon to be bridesmaids, cornering me, when I have a wonderful girlfriend I could show off to everyone and save me from the stupidity and boredom of such a party," Logan honed right in on that. "So, please, don't risk your free pass for that Friday just so you could be my watchdog now when it's not necessary at all."

He could see she was actually weighing his words now. "You really promise to be good?"

"You have my word," Logan nodded with some sincerity.

"And if I tell anyone to come by, they won't find you cheating?"

"No cheating. Come on, Ace," Logan whined, rolling his eyes.

A small smile appeared to tug at her lips. "And you really think you'll manage on your own for a few hours?"

"Ace." Now he was getting annoyed.

Her smile widened and she came over to him to kiss his cheek. "All right, I'll go. But I warn you, Huntzberger. If I find out you've been cheating on me, you'll wish you're going to be sick for a long time to come."

"Oh, yeah? What you gonna do? Deny me sex?" he asked, knowing he was playing with fire, but hell, that was who he was. Always living on the edge.

"Really, Logan, what do you think of me…" Rory just smiled back though, evilly. "No, I thought I'd rather send Paris over to play nurse a little. I mean, she's pre-med. She can use the practice." Her smile turned diabolical. "And I have it on good word that she really needs to practice a lot more at being good with patients."

Logan gulped. "You wouldn't dare."

A smile was all he got. Oh yeah, she would.

And there was no way he was risking Gellar to play nurse with him as patient for even a second. "I'll be good. No worries there, Ace."

She smiled beautifully and even patted his head. "Now, that's a good boy."

* * *

As promised, he had been good. He had moved to the couch though, because he was just tired of lying in bed, and he even had put on some clothes, just to be out of his pjs and in case Rory sent Gellar over after all. No way was he risking Gellar seeing him in his pjs.

He was reading when his cell rang with his Ace's special tune. Checking up on him, was she, huh? "Hello?"

He barely had finished speaking when she already shot ahead, bubbling with nervousness. "Listen. You're going to be getting a note from the Gilmores sometime soon. Maybe in the mail, maybe hand delivered tonight. For all I know, a carrier pigeon is heading for your room as we speak. You might want to open your window."

He frowned, not following. "Why is a carrier pigeon heading here?"

Rory took a deep breath. "They want to have you over for dinner," she told him, gravely.

"Oh."

Damn, he should have anticipated that. Of course Emily and Richard would want to meet him as Rory's boyfriend officially, especially now that he had taken her with him to his parents. That was how it worked among the rich and privileged and he knew the game well enough to know that there was no getting out of that dinner with Rory's grandparents. No polite excuses, at least and as this was important to Rory, that really was out of the question.

On the phone, Rory was rambling on, still very much nervous. "They're flipping out about it. She's sending an apology for being so remiss as to wait _one whole week_ since I had dinner at your house to extend an invitation," she mocked, unbelieving. "I mean, they're losing it. So I'm calling to warn you, and, I want you to know, I didn't suggest us having dinner with them or encourage it in any way. And I definitely did not refer to you as my b-word in front of them or even imply it in any way. Because, you know, I'm really happy with the way things have been going and I don't want any pressure put on us, and I'm sorry, and I think I already said that, and that's it," she assured him and Logan found it cute how freaked out she was about this.

Hadn't she expected this as well? Apparently not and it showed once again, just how out of the game she was. Not that he was complaining about that, it was part of the reason why he was attracted to her.

And - _b-word_?

For that one he'd have to let her squirm a little more. "What are the odds of getting out of this?" he asked, knowing very well the answer to that. But he had to admit, he was also a bit curious how accurate Rory would see the situation.

"Pretty much zero," she admitted though, unhappy.

Okay, enough was enough, he thought, as he got up to walk over to the window. "Then let's do it."

"Really?" Rory retorted, surprised.

He smiled. "Yeah, it won't be so bad." He thought. Hoped so. No, the Gilmores loved him, it would be fine, he was sure of that.

Pretty much.

"Well, you are a true gentleman," his Ace said and he could see her smiling. Wanting to tease her a bit more, he knocked sharply at the window. "Oh, my God, what was that?" she immediately asked, worried. She was probably imagining him having passed out again and hitting his head or something like that.

Logan smirked. "Carrier pigeon. Should have opened the window."

"Not funny," Rory tensely chided him.

"Kinda funny," Logan protested with a smile though.

As she didn't chew him out any further, but just told him 'Bye', he assumed she saw the humor in it at last.

"Bye," he said softly himself, smiling.

* * *

The sound of a branch colliding hard with the window had awoken Logan with a jerk. He must have fallen asleep. Glancing outwards, he frowned when he saw the darkness and the trees shaking strongly because of gusty wind. Quickly checking the time he saw that only half an hour had passed since his phone call with Rory, but the weather had turned quite a bit in that half an hour.

Quickly turning on the weather channel, he dialed his Ace, his frown deepening as he watched the satellite pictures.

"Yeah?"

"Where are you?" he asked.

"Logan? Everything okay?" Rory asked back though, a note of concern in her voice already.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm good. The weather's pretty bad though. It's almost a storm out here. Are you already on your way back?" he wanted to know.

"I just took the exit for Stars Hollow. You know I have set up for coffee with my mom after the dinner," Rory answered. "It's raining pretty heavily here, too."

"It's only going to get worse according to the weather news. Listen, don't drive back tonight, okay? Spend the night in Stars Hollow, that what was originally planned anyway, wasn't it?" Logan told her, looking once again out into the stormy night.

"Yeah. But, Logan..."

"No, Rory. I'm serious here. I'm fine and I'll be perfectly all right here, but I really don't want you driving back in this weather. Stay there, enjoy your time home, visiting with your mom," Logan interrupted her, trying to convince her.

She was silent for a long while. "You really sure you're okay on your own?" she finally asked, hesitantly.

"Yes, a lot better than when I have to worry myself half to death until you come home," Logan immediately confirmed. "Please, Rory."

"Okay, okay, I'll stay here in Stars Hollow. I originally wanted to do that anyway. Remember Lane's gig?" Rory gave in.

Right, now he remembered. Originally he was supposed to go as well, maybe even take Finn and Colin along. She thought it was time to meet her best friend and he guessed that was right. It made him nervous, to be honest. Something told him her friends were very different from his friends and if he remembered the dinner with Marty... Let's just say he wasn't that unhappy that the flu had postponed meeting the famous Lane, best friend of his Ace.

"Okay, I'm at the café. Take care, okay? And go to sleep, you still need it," Rory reminded him once again.

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, Ma'am."

"Good night," she wished him finally.

"Good night, Ace," he told her and with a deep, relieved sigh he closed the phone. He'd miss her but it really was better this way, he thought, glancing outside for a last time.

* * *

"Hey," Rory greeted him the next morning, slipping into his room. "How are you feeling?" she wanted to know first before anything else, coming over to him and reaching out to feel his forehead.

Before Rory could touch his forehead, he took her hand into his own, pulling her down for a kiss. "Much better. Drive okay?"

"Hmm," she murmured, searching his lips for another kiss, one Logan was more than happy to comply with. "So, were you a good little boy?" she asked after a while, smiling.

"Ace, I was so good, the Pope called to tell me that I just reached sainthood," Logan replied with a wink.

"Oh, really? Well, then I better not go through with the little reward I had in mind for you," Rory deadpanned.

Logan lost the smirk immediately. "Ace!"

She raised an eyebrow. "What? Can't mess with the Pope, now, can I?"

"Come on," Logan whined.

"Oh well, one look at your past and the thoughts you're having, he'll think twice about that sainthood anyway," conceded Rory. "So… are you ready for your reward?"

"You know me, Ace. Always," Logan told her, smirk back in place.

She rolled her eyes. "Don't I know it. But okay, so... Tatarata!" she exclaimed, reaching back and dropping a big brown paper bag into his lap.

He stared at it for a moment. "Uh, Ace?"

"A get-well burger and coffee. But it's not just some get-well burger and coffee, this is a get-well burger and coffee from Luke's and there's no better ambrosia and elixir out there than this burger and coffee," Rory told him enthusiastically. "I thought you'd like a change after all the chicken soup and tea of the last few days. So, enjoy it!"

Logan glanced at the bag once more, before looking back at her. "That's all?"

"Of course, that's all. We shouldn't stress your stomach too soon and too much after all," she replied, with a twinkle in her eyes though.

"Uh, well..." This was definitely not what he wanted. "Thanks?"

She nodded and waved for him to start eating. As it looked as if he really wouldn't get anything else, he slowly got out the burger and unwrapped it. Then he took out the coffee and was surprised that it was still almost hot. He had to admit, it smelled a damn lot better than the chicken soup. Carefully taking a bite, his face lit up and he helped himself to a second bite, a big one this time. Rory was right. This was definitely the best burger he ever had!

And the coffee...

It was no wonder his Ace was so addicted to coffee if that was what she used to drink for years now.

Within five minutes, nothing was left, not even a crumb.

"Ace… that was delicious," he sighed, looking sadly at the now empty bag.

"I know. And you really should know better than to doubt my wisdom with anything that can be eaten or drunk," Rory nodded, cuddling up against him.

"I stand once more corrected, I know. I'll try to never commit such a sin again," Logan promised and slipped his arm around her to draw her closer. "And did you have fun with your mom?"

"It was okay, yeah," she replied but he could tell at once, that there was something.

"Ace?"

Sighing, she looked up. "Well, turns out that that dinner with my grandparents I told you about? Mom will most likely come too. She'd like to meet you as my boyfriend officially as well and that certainly not after you've met my grandparent. So, she'll come too, I guess."

Oh.

Logan flashed back to the time he had met Lorelai and it was so not a good moment. "Oh."

Her eyes searched his. "You okay with that?"

Hell, no! But there was little he could do about it. So he shook his head. "Sure. It will be fun."

It was probably going to be a disaster, but hey, he was still a guy. A little dinner with his girlfriend's family (MOTHER!) wouldn't scare him. Nope, not him.

She gave him a look that told him pretty well what she thought about his words, but she blissfully said nothing else on that matter. Instead, her leg wormed its way between his own legs. "Now, as you were so good, I guess a little dessert wouldn't hurt either, don't you think so?"

Every thought about scary mothers immediately left his brain as his blood rushed to an altogether different head. "Hey, I'm the boyfriend of a Gilmore girl. I know better than to every say no to dessert."

Her smile was beautiful. "Now, that's my boy," she praised, claiming his lips for a deep, promising kiss.

* * *

"And you're sure you'll be okay alone?"

It wasn't just because this probably was the twentieth time already that Rory had asked him this very question this morning that Logan was seriously becoming exasperated with his girlfriend. "For the hundredth time… Yeah, I'm sure. You just go now before you miss the train."

No, mostly it was because, first, he was way better after four days of bed rest and second, because each time she asked he was really tempted to actually say no so she wouldn't leave to go start her internship. With his father.

The thought alone could make him sick again.

"You remember what the doctor has said: you might not have fever anymore but you really should stay in bed, a day or two more, to let the flu out of your system," Rory though just continued to worry, looking at him in a mixture of mistrust and warning.

Logan sighed. "No, I don't really remember, after all, I wasn't there when he left his instruction with us, or the dozen of times you've repeated this by now. Actually, as soon as you're finally gone, I'll jump up, throw on my shorts for swimming and will hop into the chopper to go skiing in the Rocky Mountains for a while, then jet over to Rio and join the carnival."

"Perhaps I should ask Finn if he wants to hang out a bit with you," Rory said, doubtful.

He glared at her. "No, you won't. Not to mention the fact that Finn has had enough hanging out time at my bedside to last him a lifetime. His words, not mine." Shaking his head, he nearly got up but seeing her look, he quickly changed his mind and instead grabbed her hands. "Ace, I really appreciate what you've done for me in the last few days but really, Rory, the flu's gone and you have to ease up now. I'll be fine, really. And yes, I'll stay in bed, I'll eat my chicken soup, I'll take the medicine and I won't tire myself out with anything. You, though, should take your bag now and go hop onto the train to go dazzle those real newspaper guys with your incredible talent. Starting by not being late because you were too busy fretting over your well-recovering boyfriend."

She gazed into his eyes and huffed. "You were sick. You've been running a fever over a hundred degrees and fainted on me. I have a right to worry about my boyfriend."

"Sure, but now I'm almost well again and for the last time, I didn't faint!" Logan emphasized, annoyed.

"Yeah, you fainted," Rory just insisted and sighed. "Okay, okay, I'll go now. But I better not hear anything about you getting up, Mister!"

"Promise," Logan simply assured her and tugged at her hands to give her a quick kiss. "Now go show them, tiger."

Rory flashed him a smile, picked up her bag and finally flew out of Logan's suite to go catch her train.

Shaking his head, he looked after his girlfriend for a moment before his face lost the reassuring and confident look. Damn. There she went, straight into the lion's den.

He just hoped the lion would let her live.

* * *

He was working on one of his long overdue papers when his cell chirped the familiar Ace tune. "Hello?" he said absentmindedly, more intent on finishing the thought he just had.

"Help, help, help!"

His train of thought being interrupted, he was all ears. Jeez, it was barely midday yet. What had his father managed to do in that short a time? "What's the matter, Ace?"

She sounded seriously distressed when she answered. "Nothing! I've just won the Spaz of the Year award. I believe it'll be on the front page of the _Gazette_ tomorrow."

Despite his worry, he had to smile. "Oh, I'm sure it's not that bad."

It couldn't be, not with his amazing Ace.

But she still sounded completely depressed when she spoke on. "I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I don't know where anybody is. I can't walk in these shoes. I got a run in my pantyhose. I ran into a file cabinet."

"Slow down!" Logan couldn't help but tease her. But really, it couldn't be that bad.

Rory wasn't in the mood to joke though. "I didn't even know if I was supposed to go to lunch when everybody went to lunch, so I just stood in the break room for, like, forty-five minutes! And then I ate an Altoid."

Realizing that he better take her hysterics a bit more seriously, Logan contemplated for something encouraging to say. "It's the first day. It'll get better," he finally assured her.

"Your father must think I'm an idiot," Rory just said sadly though.

Feeling uneasy at once, Logan sighed. "I'm sure he doesn't."

Not even his father could be that stupid. He was many things, Heaven knew, but stupid was not among those things.

"I need some help. I need something to say to him other than, 'yes, the bleeding stopped, thanks'," Rory begged and her desperation tugged at his heart, but...

This was Mitchum Huntzberger they were talking about. The last thing he wanted to do was give her an in into the psyche of that man. "Hey, I think that's pretty good."

"Logan, please. Give me something. Something I can use to connect with him," Rory insisted though.

He knew he was defeated then but he still resisted a little to avoid this so very bad idea. "I don't know!"

Just like he thought though, Rory was not taking any of that. "You do know. This is important to me, Logan. Please?"

Letting out a long, suffering sigh, Logan gave in at last. But this still was a bad idea! He answered anyway. "He likes jazz, but not when it gets too experimental, and he hates when they quote 'My Favorite Things'."

"What?" He had lost her there.

"'My Favorite Things' from the _Sound of Music_," he explained gruffly. He so didn't want to do this!

"Okay. Good," Rory said, not sounding too happy about the information so far, though. And sure enough, she already pressed him for more. "Go on."

Seeing that there really was no way out of the discussion, Logan thought a bit harder about what he could tell her that would actually be useful to her. "Uh, he lets people go at seven, but he keeps going 'till eight thirty or nine, and he notices the people who stay," he slowly started, knowing that the information was probably the kind that she wanted to know. "He hates double talk, but he's really good at it. And, uh, he has high blood pressure so he switches to decaf after four," he added, assuming she'd love that little tidbit about his father.

He wasn't wrong. "That's good. That's almost something," Rory said, pleased.

Okay, that was it. There wasn't anything more useful he could tell her anyway. The rest he could tell her about the great Mitchum Huntzberger were stuff she wouldn't want to know. "Don't worry, Ace, I'm sure you're doing fine."

Her voice was quiet and serious when she replied. "I just don't want your father to be disappointed in me."

Logan suppressed an eyeroll. "Rory, in order for my dad to be truly disappointed in you, your name

would have to be _Logan_," he told her, exasperated and okay, perhaps a bit bitter.

"I'm sure that's not true," Rory immediately contradicted his words, of course.

Well, she just didn't know the real Mitchum Huntzberger. All she saw was the great news business mogul who got his first Pulitzer nomination at the age of twenty-five. Nothing but her idol himself could probably change her opinion of him and that was the last thing Logan wanted. "Uh-huh."

"Thanks, Logan."

He smiled. On the other hand, his Ace was truly something else, and who knew, perhaps the little bits of information he had been able to give her could really help her and show all of those antiquated idiots what a star they had among themselves. "Go get 'em, Ace."

Because he had no doubt whatsoever that she was going to impress every last one of them - even his father. With him, the question was rather what he'd do about it.

* * *

"So? How did your first day in the news world go?" First thing Logan asked after Rory came into his dorm, eyeing her critically. She looked tired, but happy enough.

"Logan, thank you so much for your help! The afternoon was way better and that's only because of your little insider tip," Rory beamed and bent over to give him a deep, very grateful kiss before she plopped down beside him on the couch, leaning her head onto his shoulder. The things I learned about running a paper today, the everyday work at a newspaper office... It was exhilarating!"

Sometimes Logan really admired his Ace for her enthusiasm in general but especially her enthusiasm for the very business that was his life to be – his destiny and bane of his existence. Okay, so she was perhaps a little naive sometimes, but still, it reminded him of the joy and thrill the business could give him, had he not been so relentlessly forced into it.

"So still bent on following Amanpour?" he asked with a smile.

"More than ever! I can't wait for my graduation so I can dive in, head on," Rory confirmed, grinning widely as she looked up at him. "But what about you? Feeling better?"

Logan rolled his eyes. "Much. I'm good to go back to my classes and normal life tomorrow." Seeing the beginning of her frown, he intercepted the protest he knew would come, squeezing her shoulder. "And before you argue, Dr. Bloomberg was here today and he himself gave me the green light. You're free to confirm that with him."

Not that unbelievable, but Rory still shook her head doubtfully. "Really? I think it's too soon. I mean, it's not even a week since you've fainted..."

"I didn't faint!"

"... and your fever's gone only since yesterday. I think it really would be better if you give yourself another day," Rory continued, unfazed. "What if you have a set-back? Or faint again?"

"For the last time," Logan growled, giving his Ace a glare. "I _didn't_ faint!"

That did not deter his girlfriend. So, in the end, he had no other choice but to show her exactly just how fit he was once again.

* * *

"I see you're feeling better already."

Logan looked up from the cupboard he was searching in. "Yo, Colin, didn't you have some Swiss chocolate left from your last trip to the beautiful land of Heidi?"

Frowning, Colin crossed his arms. "Maybe. That's why you're raiding our cupboards?"

"Yes. I need it," Logan nodded, distracted, glancing at the clock. "Don't worry, I'll pay for it. But I really need it."

The only thing Colin moved was an eyebrow. "What for?"

Logan's eyes flickered from the clock to the window. Almost dark. Shit. "I'm meeting the Gilmores in an hour and still need something for Emily."

The rest of the week had gone by so quickly with all the work he had to do in order to catch up with school and still pacify Rory by taking it slow after going back to his classes that he had somehow forgotten that Friday was coming fast. Or ,perhaps he had conveniently blocked it out from his mind, after all, which guy would like to think about meeting his girlfriend's family and be introduced officially as her boyfriend? Especially, considering just who the Gilmores were and their status. And her mother, of course. He shuddered.

He had managed to score himself some cigars for Richard - rather said, he still had some fine Cuban cigars he had stashed away. But he was too late to still get anything good for Emily, so, hence his raid of Finn and Colin's cupboards at that moment.

"Is that so," grinned Colin and turned around. "Hey, Finn! Our boy's going to meet the parents!"

His own nervousness forgotten for the moment, Logan glared at the clown. "Grandparents, not parents." And her mother, but he'd rather not think about that. Better stick with the older Gilmores. "And it's not like they don't know me already. We've met plenty of times. They love me."

Colin's grin widened. "Yeah, well, that was before you banged their little princess of a granddaughter."

"Thank you so much for pointing that out," scowled Logan, but he felt his hands start sweating. It was true enough after all. "And I don't _bang_ Rory," he murmured, more to himself.

"No? What else you'd call it then?" Finn asked, sauntering into the room, still clad in his pjs. "Making love?"

Actually, that would describe the sex with Rory probably the best, but no way was he going to admit that. Avoiding the way too alert eyes of Finn, Logan glared at Colin. "You got that chocolate box for me or not?"

Moving to one of the cupboards, Colin bent down and came up with a small sleek grey and blue box. "'Course I have, straight from Berne, the best truffles you'll find in Switzerland. They should be enough to score a few points with Mrs. Gilmore."

"Thanks." Logan took the box, relieved. Colin was right, those were very fine chocolates. Rory would love them, too.

"And what do you have to smooth your way with Mr. Gilmore?" Finn asked. "I've still got a superb bottle of whisky, if you need something."

For a moment, Logan thought about it, but shook his head in the end. "Nah, I've already got some Cubans I'm sure he'll like. Thanks, though."

"Anything to help you along, mate." Finn shrugged. "You'll need all the help you can get, if you ask me."

"It's going to be fine, I'm sure," Logan reassured them once again. Mostly to assure himself. But his confidence cracked soon after and he made a face. "I'm just worried about her mom. I don't think she has the right impression about me."

"Dude, the famous Lorelai Gilmore the Second is coming, too?" Finn laughed. "Damn, I wish I could be a fly tonight."

"I don't know where she could have gotten the wrong impressions," grinned Colin as well. "After all, she just caught you groping her little girl and I'm sure she's heard stories of how you've been corrupting her daughter that she so painfully raised outside our world, forcing her into a relationship without strings..."

"That was Ace's idea, not mine!" protested Logan at once, but felt his stomach clenching uncomfortably. If he was lucky, he'd suffer a setback from the flu. Or maybe not. The longer they avoided this, the bigger the issue would get. And at least tonight, he would hopefully have the support of Emily and Richard to back him up.

"And last but certainly not least, Rory surely has told her about her dinner with your heartwarming, wonderful family," Colin continued, ignoring his protest. "No, Logan, why would you ever worry about meeting her? She just has to love you."

"You're an ass," Logan pointed out quite seriously. "Just you wait until it's your turn. Don't think I'll take the decent way and refrain from teasing you to hell and back about it."

Colin looked at him all innocently. "What? Just trying to prepare my best friend for what will come."

"Yeah, right," snorted Logan. He raised the bombonière. "Thanks for this. I've got to go now."

Finn slapped him on the back as he passed him. "Good luck. I'd say just be yourself - but considering, you better be that perfect little gentleman Shira taught you to fake."

"Yeah, and definitely don't do anything we would usually do!" added Colin, still grinning like a fool.

Logan just shot them a dark look and hurried back to his own dorm. It wasn't that bad an advise though, he admitted to himself half an hour later as he raced over to Rory's place to go pick her up.

It was only a freaking dinner with some old folks. Really. How hard could that be after all?

* * *

He was aware of the glances his Ace shot him time and time again on the drive over to Hartford. He was also aware of her amused smile. She said nothing though and for that he was thankful. He wasn't sure about the reasons for her calm demeanor. He was trying hard to appear cool, carefree and collected and not show any of the doubts he was feeling about this ominous meeting tonight.

"You're pretty quiet. You sure you're okay?"

Letting out a breath he hadn't been aware he was holding, he forced a smile. "Sure, I'm fine. Just thinking…" Damn, about what? "uh, the article your roommate's boyfriend assigned me with."

What? She was never going to buy that!

But she nodded seriously. "I see why your mind's occupied with that. Interviewing the football coach about his prospects for the upcoming game with Harvard is a tricky one. Especially for someone who has so little idea about football like you have."

He knew it! Sparing a glare for her, he notices her smile growing. Great. Gritting his teeth, he concentrated back onto the road, not even noticing how his fingers tapped nervously on the wheel.

"Logan, I'm sure there's no need to be nervous. Grandma and Grandpa love the fact that we're together. If anything, you have to worry about them picturing our wedding and their potential great-grandchildren right now than them not being nice to you," she eventually tried to reassure him when he pulled out of the highway at Harford.

"Not really helping, Ace," he sighed. "Believe me, with our folks, that's worse than not approving of me."

And it really was. He thought.

Rory wisely said nothing else until they reached her grandparents' house. Pulling up in front of the main door, Logan, being sure they were watching them already, either from the window or some hidden security cameras, rushed around the car to open Rory's door for her - she beat him to it though, a shit-eating grin twinkling in her eyes. "You know, you're not obligated to be polite until we're actually inside my grandparents' house."

He was acting ridiculously, wasn't he? Finn and Colin would laugh their asses off if they were watching him right now. Forcing himself to relax, he smiled, leaning against the car. "Good. Allow me to use these brief moments of time to make disgusting noises with my armpits."

Rory chuckled. "Oh, would you?" Growing a bit more serious, she looked him straight into his eyes. "So, this is going to be quick and painless. Believe me, my grandparents like you better than they liked Ronald Reagan," she once again tried to reassure him.

This time, Logan allowed himself to actually give in to her promise. This for sure was the first time he was compared to Ronald Reagan. "Wow. High praise." Remembering the gifts, he turned to pick them up from the backseat.

Rory eyed them, curious. "What are those?"

"Hostess gifts," he answered, steering her toward the door. "Never a bad idea to bring hostess gifts."

"Well played, Huntzberger!" his Ace cheered him on, apparently really pleased.

He wasn't sure if it was the gifts themselves or rather the fact that she was happy about his thoughtfulness, the effort he put into bringing gifts. Either was fine with him and he felt himself relax a bit more. There was still Lorelai though. He didn't even have a gift for her. The best he could hope was that Emily would share her box of chocolates with her. He had thought about bringing her something as well, but then she wasn't really the hostess, was she? Besides, he wasn't sure she would have appreciated it anyway, after everything he had learned about her. "So what about your mom? She going to be cool?" he couldn't help but ask, stopping nervously in front of the door.

Once again, Rory just waved at him, unworried. "Of course, she'll be cool. She's the essence of cool. Cool's her street name. She's got it monogrammed on her towels and everything."

Logan wasn't as sure about that as Rory was, after all she hadn't seen how her mother had looked at him that dreadful time they had been caught making out at her grandparents' wedding renewal. On the other hand, she was an unusual gal for her upbringing. And she and Rory really were very close, so why should his Ace be wrong? "Well, if she's got it monogrammed on her towels, there's nothing to worry about."

Rory rang the doorbell and glanced at the gifts in his hands once again. "What'd you bring, anyway?"

He briefly looked down at them. "Cigars for Richard, chocolates for Emily, and," he quickly draw the lighter he had picked up in the last minute out of his pocket to show her for just a few seconds, "Mrs. Eleanor Shubick's silver lighter."

"Huh? What's that for?" asked Rory, puzzled.

Logan was glad when Emily and Richard answered the door at that moment. "Rory! Logan, welcome!" Emily greeted them with a well-pleased smile on her face. Richard was behind her and waved them in eagerly as well. "Come in, come in!"

"Hi, Grandma!" Rory stepped in to kiss Emily's cheek.

'This is it,' Logan told himself and entered as well.

"Hello!" Emily returned the hug but immediately turned her attention on him. "And our guest of honor!"

"L'invité d'honneur," Richard too added, beaming. There was no other word for how the two of them looked at him. They literally beamed.

He felt his nervousness finally slip away. He knew it! He didn't have to worry about them! This was going to be an easy evening after all. God, was he relieved! It showed in the smile he gave them as he shook their hands, firmly. "How are you, Richard? Emily?"

"Wonderful, now," assured Emily, only to be echoed, once again, a second later by her husband. "Yes, wonderful."

Before either he or Rory could say anything else, Emily looked at the two of them with that look Logan had always dreaded. "Oh, look at you two, you're just perfect. Aren't they perfect, Richard?" she asked, way too pleased with what she saw.

"Perfect," agreed Richard and there was no doubt about how truthful that represented his thoughts as well.

Shit. Well, perhaps, the evening would not be quite easy after all. It would probably require a lot of effort to stop the two from booking the church and reception hall right after they left.

Rory, undoubtedly seeing the danger as well, was quick to contradict her grandparents, obviously embarrassed. "We're not perfect."

Unfortunately, with not much success. "Nonsense, you're perfect!" her grandmother protested at once.

Time for him to intervene. He was pretty sure he got more experience at this anyway, having had to dodge just about all kinds of implications for the past three years, at least. "No, she's right. I've got split ends like you wouldn't believe," he said, turning on the legendary Huntzberger charm and got Emily and Richard laughing.

"And a sense of humor," Richard mentioned, still so very damn pleased.

Damn, they really were far gone already. Not that he could blame them that much. It was what Logan had expected right from the beginning. This was just how it worked in High Society. Still - they needed to stop them somehow. Or, there would be reservations for a wedding date by the time dinner was over. Unsure where to go, he remembered the gifts in his hands and was quick to change the topic, hoping it would help. He held out the bombonière to the lady of the house. "Emily, these are for you. A small token of my gratitude."

"Vunderschen chocolates, I absolutely adore these!" Emily exclaimed, almost starting to glow.

"I picked them up last time I was in Switzerland," he modified the truth slightly.

"Well, aren't you clever," Emily praised, once again giving him that look that let him see himself already in the wedding suit. He quickly turned to Richard. "And here's a little something for you, Sir."

Richard eyed the cigar box briefly. "Oh, Romeo y Julietas. You are a good man, Logan Huntzberger!"

Logan was glad that they liked his little presents - and a little bit worried. Sure, he did want to make a good impression - it shouldn't be too good either though. His finger slid into his pocket and he fingered Shubick's lighter.

Emily waved them further inside. "Come on, let's all go in the living room, shall we?" Not waiting for an answer, she took Logan's arm to lead him into the living room. A glance back confirmed that Richard had taken his granddaughter's arm. Sharing an exasperated look for a moment, Logan returned his attention to Emily, who fingered the arm of his jacket. "I just adore this jacket you're wearing. Isn't this a fine jacket, Richard?"

Quite speechless, Logan was glad that Richard saved him from an answer. "Oh, I like how the lapels are cut. Aren't those nice lapels, Rory?"

Grinning, Logan looked at his girlfriend to see what she had to contribute to this special topic. Sure not her usual subject matter. He was pretty sure he could see an eyeroll as she nodded. "Uh, sure, Grandpa. His lapels look great."

He suppressed the chuckle teasing his throat and silently listened to how Richard once again praised his wonderful jacket and those perfect lapels. "Most modern tailors cut lapels too low. It's so sloppy, having one's lapels hang down around the chest like a basset hound's ears or something."

"But those are excellent," Emily too wasn't finished yet with these exciting lapels. Damn, he guessed he should have paid more for them after all. He had had no idea that he was wearing a rare work of art.

"Oh, they really are," Richard agreed wholeheartedly.

"Hi, Mom!" Rory exclaimed, obviously glad to turn the conversation away from the perfectness of his dinner jacket.

Rory's mom was sitting on the couch and smiling up at them. Once again Logan was stricken by how much daughter and mother resembled each other. And how beautiful her mother had aged, promising his Ace quite the good looks as well for her later years. "Hey, how am I sitting?"

And they sure had the same knack of asking the most interesting questions out of the blue, he thought dryly.

"Great. Mom, you remember..."

She was cut off by Emily. "Logan, this is Rory's mother, Lorelai. Lorelai, this is Logan Huntzberger."

Lorelai rolled her eyes, much like her daughter only moments ago. "Yes, we've met, actually. Nice to see you again, Logan."

Logan nodded. "Nice to see you."

She was smiling just like the way Rory would smile, it had been a rather cool smile.

Emily tugged at his arm. "Come on, sit, sit, sit. Let's get drink orders."

"Mmm," Richard emphasized the offer and his wife took the matter back into her hands. They sure were a good team. No wonder after that many years together. "Logan, what will you have?"

"McKellen neat, if you have it," he requested, not even thinking about ordering something without alcohol. In this circle, you were supposed to show your countenance right away with the first drink, safety in driving be damned. So, a drink now and a little wine later he would take. Not that he really minded. He still would be far from not being able to drive. Besides, Rory could drive, if absolutely necessary. Not that he was planning to get drunk.

"Oh, I adore a man who drinks his scotch neat," gushed Emily and again, there was simply no other word better fitting than 'gush', as much as it made him uncomfortable.

Richard too nodded his approval as he moved over to the home bar. "That is a fine drink indeed."

Sure it was. Logan knew his scotch, his grandfather had made sure of that at rather an inappropriate age for Logan. One good thing the old bastard had taught him after all.

"Rory?"

"Just club soda," Rory answered her grandmother's question.

It was Emily's turn to express her approval - and praised the object on the market more favorably even. "So demure. Isn't she demure?"

He was sure he saw both Lorelais roll their eyes and he too had a hard time keeping a straight face. "The demurest."

Richard nodded. "One club soda."

"And your usual, Lorelai? A sidecar?"

Lorelai looked at Emily, startled. "Sidecar? No."

Emily raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that your drink?"

"No, my drink is a martini. It's always been a martini," Lorelai answered, tension in her voice.

"Really?"

Lorelai gave her mother a look that Logan knew only too well. He himself looked at his own mother just like that quite often. "Yes. Pretty much every one of the other eight thousand times I've had a drink here, it's been a martini."

Just like his own mother, Emily seemed to be as oblivious with her offspring's exasperation. "I would've sworn you were a sidecar girl."

At this point Logan would probably have exploded, Lorelai though chose to go with sarcasm. "Not even sure what's in a sidecar, Mom."

Emily turned to her husband. "Well, Richard, apparently Lorelai would like a martini."

Logan had to admit, Emily was really good at this game - better even than his own mother. Not that that was hard to achieve. His mother's heritage as a common girl showed more often than not in comparison to the ones who were born and bred into High Society.

At least Richard seemed to be unfazed by the little power play between mother and daughter and just smiled. "Can do."

At last, Emily turned her attention back to 'the guest of honor'. "I just can't get over those lapels."

God, not the lapels again!

Rory smiled too, but a bit strained, turning to her mother. "Grandma and Grandpa are very taken with Logan's lapels."

Lorelai glanced at the lapels in question. "They look fine to me."

"You'll have to excuse Lorelai, Logan. It takes a certain eye to be aware of this kind of thing," Emily said to Logan who seriously wished he had chosen to wear something else other than this jacket.

Then again, Emily would probably gush just over something else - and used that to take jabs against her daughter. Still, he wasn't comfortable at all to be put between Emily and Lorelai like that and was very relieved when Richard came over with the drinks for Rory and him.

"One scotch neat, and a club soda."

"Thank you," he said and Logan was really very thankful for the scotch as much as for the interruption.

Rory too sounded very grateful as she took her soda. "Thanks, Grandpa."

"And one martini," Richard said and returned back to the bar to prepare it.

Sadly, Emily took the opportunity to harass Lorelai some more. "That's with a twist, Lorelai?"

"Nope. An olive."

"In a vodka martini?"

Lorelai's smile was still in place, amazingly, only her tone was biting, as she answered. "Not vodka, Mom. Gin. It's always been gin. Gin martini.

"Really?"

"Yes! Always!" Uh-oh, looked as if Lorelai's patience had reached its limits.

Not that Emily seemed to notice that - or rather ignored it. "I don't remember that at all."

Apparently declaring the issue a lost cause, Lorelai cautiously turned towards him. "Uh, so. Logan. Where exactly do you live at Yale? Are you in Rory's building?"

Good, an easy question. He hoped it stayed like that, he thought as he answered. "No, I'm at Berkeley."

"Is that far from Rory?"

He shook his head. "No, I'd say it's about ninety Kropogs or so."

"Kropogs!" Richard exclaimed, his eyes shining. "Did somebody say Kropogs?"

"Kropogs. Now that is clever," Emily laughed too and they all shared a laugh about the typical Yale way to indicate distances on campus.

Correction - everyone but Lorelai who looked puzzled at them all. "Uh, fill me in here. What's a Koop?"

Logan hurried to explain, afraid of how Emily may use the opportunity to humiliate her daughter once again. "Years ago, someone at Yale started measuring things based on the height of a kid named Kropog."

Richard joined them, sitting down at last. "I can't believe that today's Elis are still using Kropogs. Now that is really something. Maxwell T. Kropog was his name, class of forty-four," he elaborated with that smile Logan saw quite often in the faces of alumni. "Oh, Lorelai, I'm sorry. I forgot your drink. I made it and everything," he remembered a moment later, flustered.

A little less tense than while speaking to her mother, Lorelai shrugged. "Well, you remembered now."

Richard started to get up again but was stopped by Emily, who quickly rose to take his place at the bar. "No, Richard, stay, I'll get it."

"I'm glad to hear that Kropog is still part of the Yale vernacular. Tradition is so important," Richard said, clearly reminiscing about the good old days.

"Why don't we talk about something other than Yale?" suggested Rory and Logan caught a wary glance of her towards Lorelai.

Shit, she was right. It wasn't that smart to only talk about college when Lorelai was the only one who hadn't been at Yale herself - or at any other Ivy-league college. He was furiously thinking about something else they could talk about, when Emily spoke up. "Nonsense, there's nothing better to talk about than Yale. Because Yale men are the greatest. I dated a few Princeton men and a Harvard man back in my day, and they had nothing on Yale men."

"They'd better not," warned Richard good-humoredly.

Emily shared a smile with him as she came forward with a martini glass in hand. With an onion. Logan cringed, well remembering how Lorelai had ordered an olive only moments ago. Damn. Emily must really be pissed at Lorelai. And he had thought Rory had exaggerated when she had talked about the newest squabble between Lorelai and Emily.

"Here you go, Lorelai." Emily handed Lorelai the drink and sat back down.

Lorelai took it, stared for a moment at the onion in it then back at her mother. "Mom, there's an onion in here."

"Is that not what you wanted?" asked Emily innocently.

"Olive. I said olive," emphasized Lorelai.

"Well, I heard onion."

Yeah, sure... Once more, Logan suppressed an eye roll.

"Well, I said olive," repeated Lorelai tersely.

Emily glanced at Logan and it finally looked as if she had enough of this as she got up again and retrieved the martini. "Let me get you an olive."

A moment later, Lorelai had finally gotten her drink and Emily had changed the topic to tennis. He bet she knew exactly that he used to play varsity tennis and still went regularly to the club to play as often as he could manage. He didn't mind the topic but it got clear soon that it was once again not exactly something up Lorelai's subjects for conversation. Or Rory's for that matter. He tried to direct the conversation towards something more suited for Lorelai - hotels, tourism in Connecticut, anything - but he had no chance. Emily reined the discussion mercilessly and prevented all attempts to change topics. In the end, he just played along, hoping he wasn't making a complete idiot of himself.

Sure, it was important to meet the elder Gilmores' expectations, but he didn't want Lorelai to think he was just like them also, knowing how she thought about the likes of them in general. Just like the way his Ace had thought about him and his friends in the beginning.

They were talking about the oh so interesting issue of the quality of racquets and he had just promised to set Emily up with a top manufacturer he knew, very much to Emily's approval, when finally the maid appeared to announce that dinner was ready.

Thank Heaven! The sooner they started, the sooner they could leave from there.

"Well, shall we?" asked Richard and stood up.

Emily was quick to stand up as well. "I'm just going to pop into the kitchen to check on a thing or two.

Richard, will you come carve the roast?"

"Certainly."

They were just about to vanish towards the kitchen when Lorelai stopped them, her empty martini glass raised. "Is there going to be alcohol with dinner, Mom?"

"What?" asked Emily, puzzled, and Logan quickly bowed his head to hide his smile. He understood Lorelai's need for more booze only too well. Only way to get through such a gathering.

"You know, booze? 'Cause I haven't been able to get even a Kropog of gin since that first drink."

If he ever had doubts about from where Rory had inherited her wit and sarcasm, he was certain about it now. Her mother sure had a good sense of biting humor.

Not too surprisingly though, her parents didn't really appreciate that as they both frowned. "A Kropog is a unit of distance, Lorelai. Not volume," Richard lectured.

"And there'll be wine with the meal. There's always wine with the meal, Lorelai! Honestly! You're acting as if you've never been here," Emily too added, clearly exasperated.

"Sorry. Just wasn't sure," Lorelai murmured to their backs as they walked out.

Uncomfortable silence followed in which Logan desperately tried to think of something good to say to Lorelai. He really wanted her to like him. Not just because of her being the mother of his girlfriend - also because he secretly admired her. He sure knew that it took a lot to get out of this hell - the circle of society, power and money, but she had done it. At sixteen! And obviously had made a good life for herself and her child, despite it all.

But the only thing he could come up with finally was: "Roast. Sounds good." Which was, even to his ears, pretty much the most boring thing in the world.

"It does," Rory was quick to agree eagerly, telling him that she definitely wasn't as relaxed as she had said she was.

"Yeah," Lorelai nodded as well. "Who doesn't like a good roast?" she added, slightly being sarcastic, and stood up.

Relieved for the break in tension, Logan too sprang up. Getting a crazy idea in a flash, he held Rory back though, and quickly checked if the coast was clear. It was probably stupid, what he had in mind, but he just needed to do something that was him, that reminded him of just who he was and why he lived the way he lived.

"What are you doing?" Rory asked, perplexed.

God, he hoped she wouldn't be too pissed about what he was going to do. He spotted a small box on the nearby table that would do perfectly and quickly picked it up, replacing it with the lighter while he let the box vanish into his pocket. "A little Life and Death Brigade business. Every time we're in a rich

person's house we take a knick-knack. Then I leave the knick-knack I took from the last rich person's house," he explained. "I've been doing this up and down the eastern seaboard for years."

And never had been caught which said a lot about just how useless all the stuff the rich and famous collected. They never missed the knick-knacks. Probably didn't even realize that they never acquired the replacement knick-knacks themselves.

"Logan, no," Rory warned, her eyes wide.

For a tiny moment he was tempted but then he just reassured her. "Trust me. They never notice."

"You're crazy!" she accused, but was smiling.

He loved that smile. Yeah, it was a good thing. "It's fun to be crazy."

They finally joined Lorelai in the dining room. He wasn't sure if Lorelai had seen what he had done but if she had, he hoped she could appreciate the sentiment. Rory headed to the two chairs on the other side of the dining table. "Grandma probably wants us here."

Right on cue, Emily reappeared from the kitchen. "All right, the salads will be out in just a moment.

Everybody, sit."

They proceeded to do so as they were told while Emily walked around the table to get to her chair at one end of the table. Out of the corner of his eyes Logan saw her stop abruptly, frowning at the living room. "Wait a minute."

No way, Logan thought, panicking. There was no way that Emily had already noticed the missing box. They never did!

"What's wrong, Emily?" Richard asked, having joined them in the meantime.

Emily walked into the living room, staring. "Well, I don't know. Wait. My antique sewing box! It's missing!"

No freaking way! Logan felt sweat prickle at the neck of his wonderful jacket. Shit!

Richard walked around the table. "Well, that can't be."

"It is! It's gone!" Emily insisted and Logan stared at the empty plate in front of him, still unable to believe that Emily had noticed at all. They never did, damn it! "Was it here during drinks?" she asked, looking at her husband.

Richard shrugged. "Well, I can't say that I noticed."

Out of the corner of his eyes he saw the maid approaching. He wasn't the only one.

"You, hovering there! What do you know about this?" Emily exclaimed in a very accusing tone.

"Ma'am?" the maid asked, trembling.

"My antique sewing box. Did you move it somewhere?" Emily continued, her tone not getting any better.

"No!"

But the maid's protest fell on deaf ears, as Emily was way too far in her interrogation mode already. "And yet it's not here. Do you have any explanation as to why it's not here, Beatrice?"

Fuck.

This was getting worse and worse. He hadn't wanted the maid to take blame - but if he said something now, what would the Gilmores think of him? What if they kicked him out, forbid him to see Rory. He couldn't risk that, he just couldn't.

"I'm sure it's just a mix-up, Mom."

At Lorelai's words his eyes shot up, wide-eyed, as he stared at Rory's mom. The look she gave him across the table was more than just a bit condescending. It was outright accusatory and disdainful.

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

He had so fucked up this meeting. Even if he could still save his relationship with the Gilmores - he for sure had managed to disappoint Rory's mother. Once again.

What the hell had he been thinking, pulling this stupid stunt? Had he been out of his mind?

But it never before had come to something like this! Never! How could he have known something like this would happen? Tonight, out of all times?

"And – what's this? What's this lighter?" Emily exclaimed. "Richard, is this from the pool house?"

Rory's mother glared holes into him which made him _sweat_.

Richard answered in a very puzzled voice. "Well, I don't recognize it, but, well, you never know. One of the guys might have left it after a poker game."

Dismissing her husband's answer, Emily turned once again to the maid. "Well, Beatrice. I don't know what to say. I almost feel like I should go through the whole house and make sure nothing else has been misplaced."

He knew he should say something, he really knew it - but he couldn't get one word out. In the end, he didn't have to, as once more, Lorelai spoke up. "Mom, I found it."

Too busy with dealing with her purposely stealing maid, Emily apparently hadn't heard her and was still in her rant with the maid. "However, we have company and I don't want to be rude."

Across the table, Lorelai held out her hand for the sewing box, glaring at him expectantly. Deeply embarrassed, he forced himself to give it to her - amazed he could even move his hand as the rest of him felt like he was completely frozen.

"Let's just leave it for later and then you and I will have a very serious discussion," Emily was just saying as her daughter called out: "Mom, I found it!"

Stopped in her rant, Emily looked at her, befuddled. "What?"

Lorelai held out the box. "Yeah, here it is."

Coming closer, Emily frowned. "Really? Where was it?"

"Behind the centerpiece. I guess the flowers kind of hid it," Lorelai lied with not even a twitch of her eyes.

At least she didn't rat him out. Logan had no doubt though that that was not in any way a favor for him.

"Behind the centerpiece?" Emily repeated skeptically.

Beside her, the maid looked at the box and smiled, relieved. Catching that, Emily threw her a dark look, not so easily calmed apparently. "What on earth are you smiling about?"

The smile on the maid's face vanished immediately, fear standing out starkly and plainly as she answered timidly. "I'm just glad you found it."

Finally leaving it alone, Emily ordered her to go get the salad and she sat down. "Rory, Logan, I'm so sorry."

Logan didn't know what to say, so he just held his mouth shut. His Ace didn't say anything either - and for the first time since this fiasco has taken its course, he glanced at her, worried. But she had her head turned away so that he couldn't see her face and he felt a cold wave coming from her that made his heart drop an inch.

At the other end of the table, Richard too had reclaimed his seat, shaking out his napkin. "Well, never a dull moment, as we say."

The maid reappeared with the plates in her hands, her head bowed. As if nothing at all had happened, Emily smiled at her guests. "Ah, here we are. Avocado salad with beet dressing."

"Oh, wonderful. I'm starving," Richard agreed, beaming at them.

Logan tried to gauge Rory's mood again, and this time he achieved to briefly see her eyes. His heart sank a little deeper. She was pissed for sure and he couldn't blame her. And somehow, her disappointment was worse than the derision with which Lorelai regarded him.

How on Earth was he going to make up for this disaster?

* * *

The rest of dinner was much like the conversion during their drinks had been. Emily and Richard wouldn't stop praising him or pointing out what a nice couple he and Rory were - and Lorelai was quiet but for a few sarcastic comments here and there.

He played along, thinking it was the best thing for him to do in order to save what was left of his dignity in front of Lorelai - and Rory. His girlfriend played along as well after a while - while managing to continue to give him the cold shoulder without her grandparents noticing her. Under the table though, she had refused his every attempt to make contact - pulling her hand away, jerking her leg when he brushed at it.

Maybe he was able to gain a few inches back onto her good side when he praised her for her extraordinary work at the _Yale Daily News_ and the _Gazette_. Maybe. He hoped so, at least. But he sure was anxious to get out of there so he could talk it out with her and make up for his shortcoming, somehow.

That was the moment, when her grandparents started to direct the conversation to the real goal of this gathering, quite bluntly, he had to say.

"It's lovely in the Vineyard. A few years ago, Richard and I attended a wedding there. I thought there could be no more gorgeous a spot for a wedding," Emily started and Logan nearly choked.

Somehow, he had expected that this topic would sooner rather than later come, but with all the mayhem around the fucking sewing box he had totally forgotten about that. And Emily was good - there was almost no way he could answer without spiking the Gilmores' hope of a future wedding and not be totally rude. "It's beautiful," he finally agreed nonchalantly, hoping that was vague enough to not send Emily searching for wedding gowns for Rory.

Speaking of which, her cheeks were a good touch rosier already - and grew even more with her grandmother's next words. "But then we went to one on Cape Cod and it was wonderful, too. Either

place would be good for a wedding, don't you think?"

Again a question impossible to answer without strings. "Sure, I've been to weddings at the Cape myself," he settled to say carefully.

Couldn't they understand it was way too early to think about marriage? Even if his Ace was the right one, they had only just started to date and they were too young anyway.

But Emily wasn't one to give up yet - he should have known. "So you like Cape Cod?"

He sighed inwardly. "Yes."

Emily beamed at him and her husband. "We like Cape Cod."

"Mm." Richard nodded proudly.

What to say, what to say... "Great."

"And I know Rory would like Cape Cod," Emily added and Logan could swear he saw Rory disappear in the floor.

"I like what I've seen in pictures," Rory replied, as carefully as he had a minute before.

No big surprise, Emily still had more to - say. "You two would look awfully cute in Cape Cod."

And no matter how wrong he knew he was, he couldn't help but think about Rory in a bikini or on the beach in a nice summer dress in the evening and already, he was smiling. Yeah, he'd like that. Perhaps he could talk her into going with him out to the Vineyard for a weekend. She sure could use the break, with all the work she was loading upon herself. Maybe he could offer it to make up for tonight?

"Mom, did you get a job at the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce?" Lorelai interrupted his thoughts though and he soon remembered just why he had to make up in the first place.

He realized that it wouldn't be that easy as to just whisk his Ace away. Ha, and Lorelai… He had no idea how he could ever alter the low opinion she has of him after all that has happened.

"No." Emily ignored Lorelai's remark briskly before addressing him once again. "There are a lot of kids in your family, aren't there?"

Great. First the weddings, now on to the kids. Boy, the Gilmores sure had their eyes solely on him now for a match for Rory.

Had the girl been anyone else other than Rory, that moment would be the time for him to weasel out of this dreadful conversation but he just answered, resigned. "Yeah. The extended family's been pretty busy procreating lately."

He didn't mention that most of those relatives were at least eight years older than him. Or that they weren't the heir to the Huntzberger fortune that they had, more or less, been able to marry for love and nothing else, especially on his mother's side, naturally, since they were not from High Society.

"They have, have they?" Richard smiled, looking at him and he could just see how he envisioned him and Rory's kids in his mind, just like Emily.

"Do you like kids?" she too asked at that moment and letting go of the fight, he just shrugged. "Sure."

There was just no sense in trying to avoid this one any further. The Gilmores were fixated on him as their grandson-in-law, and really, he had known that would happen ever since Richard had caught him talking with Rory during the Yale Male party they had given for her. Had that exactly not been one of the reasons he had hesitated to get closer or involved with her? Not that he regretted anything but still - it would be so much easier if she weren't the granddaughter and heiress of the Gilmores.

"Kids love Cape Cod," Emily hinted the obvious. He was surprised she didn't wink at him.

"I think internships are a Communist plot."

Logan was glad he wasn't the only one who looked at Lorelai, bewildered.

"What?"

Lorelai looked at her father. "Forcing someone to work without pay? It's a little Pinko, isn't it?

I mean, where's Roy Cohn when you need him?"

"Have you lost your mind?"

Lorelai shook her head. "No, no. It's still sloshing around up there."

Quickly, Logan hid the snicker he nearly let out. He doubted that anyone at the table would appreciate it. But despite everything, he was grateful for Rory's mom in her effort to intervene and save them before they were talked into how many children they were going to have. Once again he was reminded that Lorelai knew way more about life in these circles than her daughter did. Thanks to Lorelai. But then why couldn't she understand him better or give him a chance at least? She knew how it was, damn it! She should know why he had to be like he was.

"Would you like another apple, Rory?"

Shaking her head, Rory declined Emily's offer. "Oh, no thanks. They were really good, though."

"How about you, Logan? Apple?"

That was his chance! He needed to get out of there - before he managed to sink even lower in Lorelai's eyes. Not that there was any lesser to go. Glancing at Rory, he could tell she was ready to make a run for the door as well. Thank God! "Thank you, but I don't think I could eat another thing, and unfortunately we should be going. I have an early day tomorrow," he offered as an excuse to leave right away, confident that that would get them out without much problems.

Sure enough, Emily looked appropriately chagrined. "Oh, Logan, an early day. I'm so sorry we kept you."

"I wish I could stay longer," he lied with a smile.

This was the dance he had been dancing his whole life - and he was good at it. His father had taught him well in that department.

"An early day is an early day. Beatrice, get their coats," Emily ordered as they all got up.

"I had a wonderful time. Thank you so much," Logan assured smoothly. In his mind though, there was only one message left: get out, get out, get out and he impatiently waited for Rory to say her goodbyes. When she went to hug her mom though, his brain came to a screeching halt. Shit yeah. He doubted he could worsen Lorelai's impression of him even more, or improve it for that matter, but he nonetheless turned toward her. "Nice to see you again."

Lorelai nodded. "Nice seeing you again, too. I hope we can all do this..."

She never got to finish her sentence, as her mother rudely interrupted them. For a tiny moment, Logan was tempted to insist on hearing out what Lorelai had wanted to say, but she was already apologizing with a grimace to Emily and the 'get out' message was blinking furiously in his mind again. So he let them usher them out, exchanging more of the typical small talk. He dimly remembered promising Emily something about her tennis racquet and confirmed that once again, very much to both Emily and Richards delight, and then _finally_, they let them go and the front door closed behind them.

Thank God, Heaven and Holy Mother of God!

He helped Rory into his car and then hurried to drive away. He was so relieved to have that disastrous dinner over with finally, that it took him until he was way out of Hartford to notice that his girlfriend was very quiet. Uh-oh. He stole a glance at her but her face was turned away and he couldn't gauge her mood.

He had a pretty good idea though.

"Well, I guess that could have gone better, huh?" he spoke hesitantly, searching for the right words to say and failing.

"You think?" she replied sarcastically, sparing him a single glare.

Nope, that wasn't good at all.

"Okay, you're mad. I get it." For a moment he concentrated on driving. "I shouldn't have swapped the sewing box with the lighter," he admitted eventually, quietly.

Rory gave him another glare, said nothing though.

And even so, he knew he had fucked up, he felt the need to defend himself at least a little. "But I swear to you, I had no idea Emily would notice it. They never notice it, never have, not for years! How was I to know that Emily's such a control freak that she notices even the slightest thing moved?"

With a sigh, Rory shook her head. "You could have asked me before doing anything. Or you could have had the good sense to know that perhaps, it's not the best idea to steal something while you're having dinner with your girlfriend's family!"

"I didn't steal," Logan protested but it sounded weak even to his own ears. "I've replaced it."

"You took something that didn't belong to you. That's called stealing, mister, no sense in justifying what you did. And you idiots do that regularly?" Ace made a disgusted face and crossed her arms. "You're lucky I didn't know that little fact when I did the article on you guys. Or it wouldn't have been such a nice article. Are you going to do other stupid and cruel stunts like this?"

"Hey, now hold your horses there. It's just a prank. No harm done to anyone," he countered, starting to get a little bit pissed himself.

"No harm? Damn it, Logan, Beatrice almost lost her job tonight! That's not just a little prank!" Rory exclaimed, her face hardening.

"That was a one time thing. And she didn't lose her job," Logan pointed out stubbornly.

"Yeah, thanks to the good sense of my mom," Ace immediately retorted back. "And how do you know that this was a one time incident? Do you guys go back and check if the household personnel is the same, that nobody was fired because of the pranks you do? Do you do any kind of follow up to see what happened exactly once the owner noticed that something has been stolen? How sure are you really that no innocent employee got fired, most likely with a real bad recommendation, just because you rich kids were bored?"

Logan opened his mouth to tell her exactly where she could put her wild accusations but closed it again with his hold on the steering wheel tightening.

Fuck.

"Can't assure me that, can you?" The heat had left Rory's voice and he risked a glance her way. She looked sad and defeated. "Logan, these people, they need their jobs. They don't deserve to get fired for your stupid pranks. And have you any idea how hard it is to get another job in a new household when you've got the label 'thief' stamped on your forehead? You've got to put a stop to this, Logan."

He was silent for a long while before he finally answered her. "I'll talk to the others." He wasn't sure how much use it would be, after all, he was just one guy in the Life and Death organization. But he had to say something, he knew that now. No matter how much he hated to admit that they really hadn't thought a lot about the consequences when they had started to practice this _tradition_.

"Good."

It was quiet for a while before he spoke again, looking ruefully at her. "I guess there's no sense inviting you to our next Brigade shindig, huh?"

She met his eyes, surprised. "I'm invited again? Because we're together now?"

"No. Actually, the Brigade offered you a membership right after the last event you attended. Remember the mask and the champagne? That's your membership card. They liked you," he told her, finally. This was a long overdue conversation, but somehow, other things had always been more pressing. "But a lot happened in the meantime and you were always busy for the few meetings in-between that it never really came up again. Next weekend will be another shindig and they asked me to invite you along."

"Back then I would probably have said yes on the spot. Now though..." She shrugged. "I'm not sure I want to be part of a group that has so little respect for the people working for them. I may be the granddaughter of the Gilmores and Mom got her own inn now, but I still grew up as the daughter of a maid. Right now it would feel like a betrayal if I joined the Brigade."

Remembering her background explained a lot about her outrage just now and Logan could have banged his head for forgetting about it. He didn't even want to think about Lorelai. No wonder the two of them had shown so little humor about the prank. Of course, in this light, it really wasn't all that funny, he concluded. "I can't make that decision for you and I'd understand if you don't want to join us after all," he told her quietly. "But we're not all that bad."

"I know."

They were driving back to New Haven and exited the highway. Coming to a red light, he used the opportunity to look into her eyes. "And I'd like it very much if you would come, too."

To his immense relief, there was a hint of a smile that played on her lips. Looked as if the storm was over. "Thanks. But I need to think about it."

He nodded and the light changed to green. Concentrating back onto the road, he changed the topic. "Do you want to go to Rick's?"

She grinned. "I thought you had an early day tomorrow?"

He grinned back, and yeah, it was anything but innocent. "Honor had organized a family lunch tomorrow to get the wedding plans going. We'll meet Josh's family. So I've got to be in the City by one o'clock. That's early enough for a Saturday."

"Sounds like fun," Rory said dryly. "So you're not going to be around tomorrow?"

With a start he realized that he had forgotten to tell her about that wedding lunch. Great. One thing more that he had done wrong today. To be fair though, Honor had told them all about the lunch only yesterday, well knowing that further notice would have given each of them even more opportunity to find something else to do urgently at that time. As it was, he would be highly surprised if his father wasn't going to have an urgent meeting tomorrow. Not that that was such a bad thing.

"Sorry, it slipped my mind. Though I thought anyway that perhaps, you could come with me, go shopping perhaps while I'm at the lunch and once that one is over, we could meet and spend the rest of the weekend in the City," he proposed. "What do you think?"

As he had expected, her first reaction was a frown. "I don't know. There's so much I have to do: three papers due next week..."

"That you already have finished but one," he pointed out.

"The article for the _Yale Daily News_..."

"Already drafted and only needs some finishing that won't take much time."

"And I need to read a ton of things for Monday when I'm back at the _Gazette_," Rory finished and he was triumphant to see a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

"I never said you can't bring your books. Never would I be so outrageous to demand such a thing of you," he told her with a sly smile. "Come on, Ace, it's just a weekend in the City. Soon, there'll be the finals and then it's summer and you know I have to go on my European trip with Finn and Colin. I just want to spend as much time with you as possible before that."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Are you begging?"

His smile widened. "Is it working? I can even go onto my knees if you want to. Of course, that would have to be in an extremely public place. Like Rick's. Or the cafeteria." His smile turned wicked. "Or in your next class."

"Now it's blackmail."

Logan laughed at that dry comment. "Whatever works, Ace. So?"

"So, I guess we spend the weekend in the City," she sighed, defeated.

He wasn't fooled though, not with her eyes sparkling like that. "Good girl. Now going back to my original question: Rick's or someplace else."

But now Rory shook her head. "I'm not really in the mood for a big crowd. Can't we just go home, spend a quiet night in front of the television. There's a Hitchcock night on one of the channels."

For a moment he thought about insisting on a drink, but one look over to his girlfriend and he knew she really wasn't in the mood. And after tonight it surely wouldn't be a good idea to go out alone. Besides, he wanted to be with her. "Cool. Which ones?"

He was rewarded with a big but also intimate smile and he knew he had at last done something right this night.

About damn time.

* * *

"So, how was the dinner? Rory's grandparents already ready to marry you two off?"

Logan rolled his eyes at Colin sliding into their booth at Rich Man's Shoe. "Feels like déjà vu."

"Don't stall, spill," Finn ordered, straddling the chair opposite Logan.

Knowing better than to even try to avoid answering their questions, he leaned back and simply answered truthfully. Besides, it felt good to talk about it - even if it was extremely embarrassing for him. "First of all, it was another dinner from hell. Second, yeah, pretty much, from what I gathered, we're to have a wedding on Cape Cod or the Vineyard and I'm pretty sure they have already our children pictured in their heads. And third, I was almost busted by them stealing a sewing box from Emily. On account that I'm still eligible bachelor number one for Rory for them, obviously, they didn't notice, but Rory's mom did. So Rory and I had our first big fight, the Gilmores are ready to make an announcement in the papers about our engagement and, boy, does her mom hate my guts now. Dinner from hell," he wrapped it up and helped himself to a big drink of his coke.

The eyes of his friends nearly bulged out of their eye sockets, which was almost worth the humiliation he knew would follow for a long time coming.

It was Finn who first regained control over his voice. "Explain."

Colin nodded furiously, looking expectantly at him.

With a sigh, Logan recounted the evening at the Gilmores. By the time he was finished, the two dumb heads were laughing tears.

"Jeez, had I known it was so funny, you having a girlfriend, I would have made sure you had one years ago!" Colin laughed, yapping for air.

"I can't believe you nearly got the maid fired. And that Rory's mom had to bail you out once again!" Finn managed to comment, between fits of laughter. "But dude, what were you thinking, pulling such a stunt when you were there with your girlfriend to meet her folks?" he added after he had calmed himself a bit - after a long moment.

Logan shrugged. A question he had asked himself many times since Friday night and he still wasn't sure about the answer. "I dunno. It's an LDB thing. I never heard of a rule that excluded the homes of your girlfriend's families," he answered grudgingly.

Their shoulders still shaking with silent laughter, the two idiots just shook their heads.

"About that, the whole fiasco got me thinking. I think we should stop doing that swap challenge. It could really get the household personnel into trouble, as Friday proved," he suggested, remembering his promise to Rory.

Colin tilted his head to the side. "Hmm, I see my old friend Logan sitting here, but I hear Rory. Do you, Finn?"

"Definitely. Maybe, she already has him under control. You know, sooner or later, that happens to all of them poor losers." Finn wiped an imaginary tear away. "Such a tragedy. He was such a wonderful mischievous bachelor."

"Oh, cut it out you two!" Logan growled, annoyed. "Okay, so yeah, Ace pointed the possible consequences to our pranks out, but that doesn't change the fact that she's right about it. We never thought about it, but our goal was never to get anybody fired. That's not what the LDB is about, or is it?"

"Calm down, I agree. We'll talk about it in the next meeting," Colin said, more sincerely than a minute before. He still was a dumb head though, but then, that was nothing new to Logan.

"It was starting to get boring anyway. We need something new and more challenging," Finn added, his eyes gleaming. Logan was pretty sure that Finn already had an idea.

"So, you're still in the doghouse with Rory?" Colin changed the topic, grinning dirtily at him.

Logan felt himself grin in return. "No, all is good between us."

Finn slapped him on the back. "You go! Make-up sex as good as they say?"

His mind flashed back to Friday night. They hadn't seen much of the Hitchcock movies after all. "You bet." He looked at his watch. "And speaking of which, I've got to go. I promised Ace I'll go pick her up at the station." Grabbing his jacked, he slid out of the booth.

"Wimp!" Colin called after him.

Logan ignored the comment. But he made a mental note to make them pay once they've gotten themselves girlfriends.

* * *

"Hey, you." His Ace came to him with a smile, grabbed the lapels of his jacket and pulled him in for a deep kiss. A little surprised, he was more than happy to oblige and wrapped his arms around her, deepening the kiss. When they eventually separated, he raised an eyebrow at her. "Not that I'm complaining, but what was that for?"

Smiling, she hooked her arm on his and beamed up at him. "That was for that golden tip about the decaf coffee." She stopped and gave him another kiss, this one more soft and intimate. "And that," she said softly, stroking over his cheek, "is for being the best boyfriend in the world."

"Thank you," he replied as softly, resting his forehead against hers for a moment. "I take it your second day went better?"

"Much better! I even got to attend the meetings today. It was so exciting! And your dad! He's so good, Logan!" Her eyes shone and it was easy to tell that she really was very happy about her day at the _Gazette_.

Logan wasn't so sure he liked that. "I've heard. And he treated you right?" he asked mistrustfully.

"Oh, absolutely. I mean, he didn't favor me or anything, far from it, but he was real nice and very professional. Very respectful too." She pulled him towards the exit. "But I'm really hungry now, hardly had time for a sandwich, I was kept so busy today. Let's go eat something."

"Sure," he murmured and followed her, more slowly. He didn't like it. Rory didn't know his father. If he really had been so nice to her, then it meant something. Mitchum Huntzberger was never nice without a reason. And it seldom was anything good. The bad feeling he had about this whole thing came back with ferocity, but he didn't know what to do about it. He had warned his father, he had warned Rory, or at least tried to, so there was nothing else he could do. Was there?

He wasn't sure - but no matter what, he had a very bad feeling about this.

* * *

TBC

_(Author's Note: At last, a new chapter. There wasn't much I could add around it as this episode really held a lot of R/L scenes, so I hope it wasn't too boring. Once again, I thank all of you who are still reading this, leave a review or add this baby here to your favorites. It really means a lot to me. As for the next chapters, I'm working on it, but I know better than to make any promises right now. My duties at work changed, leaving me with little free time and I do concentrate more on my original stuff when I have time to write than my fanfiction stories. I still am adamant to finish every last one of my stories, but alas, it will take time... In the meantime, I've reloaded all recent chapters. Thanks to my wonderful Beta, all chapters are now beta-ed and several times re-read. Any mistakes that might still be in it - well, let's just say that his was definitely the last time I reworked this monster of a story. Okay, enjoy this one and until next time!)_


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